Remembering Khushwaqt ul Mulk- letter3

Col. (R) Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk was a legend of Pakistan. He was the senior most living officer of Pakistan Army when he died on February 12, 2010 at the age of 96. In fact he had received a letter from his old school in Dehra Dun, India stating that “after the demise of Gen. Dubey six month ago you are now the senior most living officer to be commissioned from the Indian Army”. He was laid to rest in Mastuj, Chitral district on February 13, 2010. He was a sportsman, a philanthropist, a social activist and a prominent figure of the country.

His grand father Amanul Mulk ruled the former princely state of Chitral for 36 years (1856-1892). His father His Highness Shujaul Mulk ruled the state of Chitral for 42 years (1895-1936). His three brothers Nasirul Mulk , Hisamul Mulk and Khosh Ahmadul Mulk are remembered as men of letters, his two brothers Shahzada Amiruddin and Shahzada Ghulam Muhiuddin are remembered as mystics or sufis.

He Joined Prince of Wale’s Royal Indian Military College at Dehra Dun India for education in 1926 at the age of 13. He received his military training at Dehra Dun and got regular commission in 1935-36. His first posting was in Merut. From Merut he wrote a letter to one of his cousins in 1937. In the letter he foresees World War II in near future and expresses his enthusiasm to join the forces on the battle front. He looks at combat as a unique experience in life, and finally he willingly faced combat situations on many occasions in Singapore Front. He was the first Muslim Commandant of South Waziristan Scouts in 1948-51. He was also posted as Deputy Inspector General of Frontier Corps Balochistan and Commandant East Pakistan Rifles.

When Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk got his commission as an army officer in 1936 there were only a handful of such Muslim officers. They had been carefully selected from well known traditional families of India. Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk got his early school education at the Royal Indian Military Academy (RIMC), which was then, and continues to be, the most prestigious school in India. The British were particularly thrilled with the young officers who were sons of rulers of princely states and groomed them to be their worthy successors in the Indian army. Young Khushwaqtul Mulk was one such officer. At the age of barely 29 he was given command of the South Waziristan Scouts (SWS) to control an area which was, even then, a thorn in the side of the government. Officers serving under Lt. Col. Khushwaqtul Mulk in SWS were British.

When the British left the armies of India and Pakistan totally in the early fifties a resentment was seen to be growing between the polo-playing princely officers and those not so fortunate to inherit such qualities. Ayub Khan, himself a son of a Subedar passed on the reigns of the army to Musa an ex-sepoy. There was a determined move to filter out the officers with strong “British values” like Khushwaqtul Mulk who by this time was holding a Brigadiers rank and commanding East Pakistan Rifles in Dacca. Such was the haste to eliminate such “Elitist” officers that Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk received a letter wrongly addressed to him informing colonel Azizuddin (late father of our present ambassador to Afghanistan Tariq Azizuddin) that he had been abruptly retired from service. When Khushwaqtul Mulk phoned up Azizuddin, with a heavy heart, to pass on the bad news to him Azizuddin said “no worry Khushi, your retirement order has been wrongly sent to me!”. Thus he got his retirement 1957.

So the seeds of mediocracy and the consequent deterioration of the officer class in the army had been sown at that time and continue to plague us till today. It was easy to see why Ayub and Musa were jealous and envious of people like Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk who at that time had been brushing shoulders with Orlaf Caroe and Sir George Roose keppel on equal terms.

He was a prince with a difference. He was Governor designate of Mastuj province of the state since 1936. Until his retirement from the Army he ruled by proxy. After his retirement he held different advisory and consultancy positions in US Consulate Peshawar and consequently he seldom turned up to rule the inherited province in person and to run the day today affairs as a prince. His rare presence in his ancestral home Mastuj was considered as a blessing for the people because he did not resort to show his command; he rather tried to engage his subjects in sports activities, cultural gatherings, big feasts and dinners. He used to invite even deaf and dump fellows of the locality, for special dinners twice in a years.

He knew the term “Stick and Carrot”, as tool for administration but he did not believe in stick, he only believed in carrot. This is why nobody was harmed by his orders and his person was known for hospitality, kindness, philanthropy and generosity.

By the virtue of his long experience, he believed firmly in participatory approach for development and he used to say that people should be trusted for smooth journey towards collective progress and prosperity.

The opening of Kunar road for Chitral via Nawa Pass –Arnawi border was his brain child. At the age of 78 He travelled from Mohmand to Chitral by foot via this route in March 1991, just after the withdrawal of soviet forces from Afghanistan. He undertook this journey at a time when it was still full of land mines. He worked hard as a lobbyist for the people of Chitral and opened the route for vehicular traffic in December 1992. The people of Chitral continued to use this route up to 2009-10, when National Highway Authority temporarily opened the Lowari Tunnel for Traffic. He had also in- direct contribution in the construction on of Lowari Tunnel, because Gen. Pervez Musharraf was his family friend.

At the ripe age of 80 he established Brooke Hospital for Animals in Pakistan. Today this hospital takes care of 280,000 working horses, donkeys and mules of poor people who depend on these animals to provide a livelihood for their families.

To encourage development in his area, Col (R) Khushwaqtul Mulk had placed his estate and property in Mastuj at the disposal of the community for construction of self help schemes, like link road, irrigation channel, mini hydel stations water supply schemes, schools, play grounds, etc, etc. He always joined people in carrying out work on such schemes. Latest example of a scheme for which he motivated people and generously contributed on his part was the scheme of alternate route for Mastuj through Kroi Deri mountain slope. In December 2003, addressing a big gathering on the occasion of earth breaking ceremony of the road he said “Where there is a will there is a way”. Within two years the road and bridge became a reality.

His role in Pakistan movement is also remarkable. He facilitated meetings of public opinion leaders from Chitral with prominent figures of independence movement. It was through his good offices that Shahzada Hisamul Mulk met Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Sardar Patel and Pendit Nehru in Dehli in 1946. He also facilitated the meeting of Aga Sadi Khan Chughtai, Ghazi Khan and many other political workers with Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Col. (R) Khushwaqtul Mulk was a mystic in his approach towards religion. According to Prof. Dr. Ismail Wali, he had composed many poems in English to praise Almighty Allah, which he used to recite. He thought Almighty Allah should be known through the observation of His creature, His seasons and the universe. After His pilgrimage to Mecca in 2002, he used to say that sectarian feelings were baseless in Islam, as in Ka’aba and Masjid-e-Nabavi, all sects were seen under one umbrella. Following are a few lines from his spiritual thoughts for February 2010, which he used to recite on his bed.

“Seek Heaven Within And It Will Manifest Outwardly. Man Seeks Everywhere Heaven Except Within Himself And Therefore Fails To Find It.

The Presence Of God In Mind Is Heaven. His Absence From Mind Is Hell And The Root Cause Of All Sin.
The Kingdom Is Not In Affluence, Nor In Its Absence. It Is An Inner Divine Order Based On Love.

The Kingdom Is Not In What To Eat Or Drink Nor In Abstaining From Them. It Is In Trust In God And His Righteousness With Peace, Joy, Goodwill In The Heart. Ask For His Blessings And Trust In His Power.

The Kingdom Is Peace, God's Peace Beyond All Understanding But Felt In The Heart, Peace Is A State Of Consciousness Into Which We Enter Right Here And Now In This Very World.

We Are Free To Choose Our Thoughts. Therefore Choose The Best, Purest, Strongest And Most Fearless And Wholesome Thought In Tune With Divine Perfection.”

Condoling with his sons, Sirajul Mulk and Sikandarul Mulk, many people have commented on the life and achievements of the deceased soul. I would like to conclude this obituary with the comments of Prof. Israruddin who says “In his long span of life he witnessed different important events in history, and also played unique role in some of them. Thus he was a living legend and though he has died, the legend will never die”.

This comment reminds me of an important event in the history of succession to the throne of Chitral state. There was a controversy on the succession of Prince Saifur Rehman in 1946. Prince Hisamulk Mulk had challenged the succession. Eventually many options were considered and one option was designating Shahzada Khushwaqtul Mulk as successor to H.H Muzafarul Mulk. However Sir Olaf Caroe, Secretary to Viceroy, did not agree to the suggestion. Had this option been taken up, the history of the whole region would have taken a different course.

 

Dr Inayatullah Faizi,

Chitral.

01 March, 2010.

Remembering Khushwaqt ul Mulk- letter2

Shahzada Khushwakhtul Mulk has passed away at the ripe age of 97. In his death Chitral has lost a son, who represented the best values of Chitral. He lived and died as true son of the soil and a very noble human being. Even in his death he caused a good tradition to be set in as much as his heirs advised people not to take the trouble of visiting Mastuj for condolence which would have caused great inconvenience and avoidable expenses in this harsh season. Recently at least three people lost their limbs while slipping in ice in the course of condolence visits. This tradition needs to be built on to save people from a wasteful custom causing hardship and impoverishment to an already impoverished people. There are more appropriate ways for condolence in this digital age. However close relatives can pay personal visits if they so choose.

His death is being widely mourned as if he belonged to every caste, sect and region. We had very few people from the royal family after Mehtar Aman-e Mulk,who were owned and revered by every denomination as if he belonged to them. Like the great Moghuls,who ruled over the predominantly Hindu India,without making them realize that their rulers belonged to another religion, late Shahzada Khushwakhtul Mulk was owned and respected by the Sunnies, Ismilies and Kalash alike. This is indeed a rare phenomenon in these troubled and tormented times,defined by narrow prejudices like sectarianism. Only great men like Quaid-e-Azam could have achieved these heights, who born to an Ismaili family died as a true Muslim owned and revered by all Muslim and non Muslim sects. Although I do not claim to have known Khushwakhtul Mulk well but the emotional outpourings over the loss has forced me to pen down my impressions based on whatever information that I could lay my hands on.

It is said that a man is known by the company he keeps. Similarly a parent is known by the quality of his children. His son Sirajul Mulk is already an icon in his own right. He has done a lot for Chitral. Almost single handedly he has put Chitral on the tourism map of Pakistan . He works as true ambassador of Chitral and represents its core values. His brother Sikandarul Mulk, a popular and respected politician, has done much to promote Chitrali culture especially its polo and music. Both of them are bound to reach the level of excellence in whatever they do, provided they continue to tread the path of their father. Khushwakhtul Mulk’s popularity in upper Chitral where he was Governor in the old days testifies to his benign rule. Late Shahzada’s son in law, Fardad Ali Shah, a reluctant politician, has entered the field driven by his altruism and love of service to Chitralis. Despite being out of power, he has left his imprints in many struggles for Chitral’s popular causes, the most important being his successful advocacy to transform lowari rail tunnel into road tunnel.

Shahzada khushwakhtul Mulk did not favour the idea of opening up Chitral to outside world, fearing that Chitralis were ill-prepared to benefit from such an opportunity and were more likely to lose much. This reminds one of Sir Syed’s advice to Muslims to keep away from politics until they are prepared for it. He however knew the inevitability of opening up Chitral to the outside world which forced him to appeal to his people to get united, pool up resources and protect Chitral’s vital interests. He himself tried to become a role model by rising above narrow prejudices. He thought that without bridging the sectarian divide, Chitralis can not fight the coming challenges. However he could not do much to narrow the ethnic divide. Perhaps his heirs would complete this unfinished task and bridge the gulf between the yuft (commoners) and the Ayubia (former ruling caste) to truly unite Chitral and refuse to give ground to political adventurers to do politics at the cost of Chitral’s destiny by exploiting sectarian, ethnic and regional pluralism. This would be the best way to pay tribute to this great man. His life and work remind us that victory lasts for a life time but excellence lasts for ever. So let us follow his foot steps if we want to truly honour him.

 

Islamuddin,

Garam Chashma,

Chitral.

26 Feb,2010.

Remembering Khushwaqt ul Mulk- letter