Remembering the departed ones

By Afzal Hussain Bokhari

The death by heart attack on Saturday morning of journalist Sohail Qalandar came as a genuine shock for the community of newsmen in City. Except for his inborn humility, he never showed any signs of weakness or ailment. Hours before the fatal cardiac arrest, he apparently looked hale, hearty and kicking.

News of his death spread like wild fire in the Frontier metropolis. People from all parts of City rushed to join the mourners who took the dead body to Mardan where the funeral prayers were held in the College Ground. Friends looked at the dead body and blinked in disbelief. They never thought that death could strike so deceptively to snatch an aggressively professional journalist from the otherwise tame Peshawar.

He occasionally appeared on the television show 'Columnkaar' and despite his inherent shyness surprised his seniors - Athar Abbas, Abdul Qadir Hassan and Mujib-ur-Rehman Shami - by telling the inside stories about important developments. From the arrest of Maulana Sufi Mohammad, the chief of Tehrik-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Mohammadi to the disappearance of Maulvi Fazlullah, the son-in-law of the TNSM chief, Sohail Qalandar was formidably updated on otherwise sensitive issues.

As resident editor of the Peshawar edition of Seth Sultan Mohammad Lakhani's daily newspaper 'Express', he never threw any tantrums about his social status. He put in the best of his efforts to create a healthy competition among the Urdu-language newspapers coming out of the provincial capital. Whenever he came across a junior newsman, his attitude was patronising rather than snobbish or highbrow.

Most of the time the op-ed and colour pages along with the Sunday magazine arrived in ready-made form from Lahore but still the coverage of local events was wonderful. The newspaper had a bigger team of reporters as it had the added advantage of enjoying the support of two television channels, one in Urdu and the other in English.

As the coincidence would have it, the offices of four major newspapers in City happen to be located in the radius of just one kilometre from Gulbahar police station to Sikandarpura bus stop. All the same, there was no tradition of pulling the others' leg. The common observation is that people like Sohail Qalandar rarely stray into the field of journalism.

Just a day before Sohail Qalandar's demise, the cruel hand of death struck in Dera Ismail Khan on December 11 and snatched from literary circles of the province the person of Professor Ghaffar Babar, who was a readable poet of Urdu and Seraiki.

Born on February 2, 1943 in DI Khan, Ghaffar Babar did his Master's in Urdu and Islamiat and later joined the field of teaching. DI Khan has already produced poets like Professor Ghulam Mohammad Qasir, his father-in-law Mohammad Saeed Akhtar, Professor Nazeer Ashk, Dr Tariq Hashmi and others.

Admirers of Ghaffar Babar knew that collections of his poetry included Jada-i-Noor (Hamd-o-Naat), Barg-i-Zard, Namkiat, Chand Chambeeli, Zarb-i-Gul, Chashm-i-Sadaf, Mauj-i-Tarab, Gufta-i-Yaran and Phal Kanday. Two of his collections contained humorous poetry. Some of his manuscripts are ready to be published in book forms.

Books are not the only means to get recognition. Three local newspaper reporters of City, for instance, were given gold medals for their comprehensive coverage of educational activities. Readers of Urdu newspapers are adequately familiar with the names and write-ups of Mohammad Fayaz Khan (daily Mashriq), Shehryar Jalil (daily Aaj) and Mohammad Haroon Khan (daily Express).

City papers carried a group photograph of the three reporters with other related figures. Due to rush of political news and coverage of terrorist attacks, the educational activities usually get neglected or assigned to inner pages. Colleges and schools do extend invitations to major newspapers but due to media persons' obsession with political developments, court proceedings, crime world, sports and the showbiz, they fail to show up in the event and the concerned institutions have to issue a press release to the papers.

As far as cultural and educational activities are concerned, these have drastically been reduced due to the car bomb explosions and suicide attacks in City. As a measure of pre-caution, the government has prohibited the entry of automobiles into the historical Qissa Khwani Bazaar and Saddar Bazaar. Regardless of the presence or absence of cars, the bazaars and markets of Peshawar have been wearing a deserted look.

A powerful symbol of the City culture were the 'Qehva Khanas' or shops offering steam-hot green tea with the unmistakable flavour of cardamom in it. With stylish Chitrali caps on head and wrapped in warm 'pattoos' (shawls), the residents of Peshawar with plenty of leisure used to walk into one of the qehva khanas in Qissa Khwani, Hashtnagari or Namakmandi and endlessly sip on small-sized cups of green tea.

City administration has been bringing on roads freshly-trained police commandos who are supposed to be more conversant with the art of combating terrorism in all its prevalent and new shapes. Roads leading to the well-fortified Governor's House, Frontier House and the district police lines have been closed to private cars.

From Karkhano Markets to the General Bus Stand, the 20-kilometre-long GT Road has been profusely studded with massive blocks of concrete, road humps and steel barriers. To absolute strangers the road at places looks like the training ground of anti-terrorist police squads. The huge sacks full of sand or clay are being placed as cushions along the walls of the Parashoot Training School, the Flagstaff House and other vital buildings.

Those in a hurry feel frustrated, if not annoyed. Normally a leisurely drive of 15 to 20 minutes, the 20-kilometre-long stretch of road can hardly be covered these days in 45 minutes. The checking of cars by police taxes the patience of the motorists. If accompanied by women and children, the journey becomes all the more tiresome with grumbling voices from all sides.

Towards the end of this piece, one would like to refer to the protest march of Peshawar University Teachers' Association (PUTA), which has been calling upon the government to recover the kidnapped vice-chancellor of Kohat University, Dr Lutfullah Khan Kakakhel.