South Asian Pulse

Hidden Truth-2 by Dr. A. Q. Khan

11.6.12

My dear brother, Mohammed Sarwar, Assalamo Alaikum,

I hope you are well. May Allah bless you, your family and all British citizens of Pakistani origin with good health, long life, prosperity and tranquility and protect you from all evil – Ameen.

1) I went to Lahore on 6th June. PIA is obviously in a mess. Only small, uncomfortable ATR planes fly on the Islamabad-Lahore route and the times are most inconvenient. I had to get up at 5 a.m., pray, get dressed and have a cup of tea with toast and left for the airport at 6 a.m. in order to catch the 7 a.m. flight. The flight was quite cramped and uncomfortable and we reached there at 8 a.m. After stretching my legs and having a cup of coffee, I then went to the famous Allama Iqbal Medical College. There we had an important meeting and it was decided to form the Pakistan Association of Scientists, Engineers and Doctors (PASED). The purpose is to get together, identify the problems being faced by the country in the scientific, engineering and medical fields and to find solutions to theseproblems. I was elected as Chairman of the Association. After the meeting we went to the auditorium of the College where more than 1,000 girls, about 500 boys plus faculty were waiting for us. Prof.Dr. Javed Akram, the Principal, is an eminent doctor who was in charge of the Chief Minister’s Task Force to handle the Dengue Fever epidemic, in which he did an excellent job. As soon as I entered the auditorium, the students started shouting and the atmosphere became one of a Michael Jackson concert. First there was a recital from the Holy Quran followed by Dr. Javed’s introductory speech. He emphasized that, never in the history of the College, had anyone received the kind of welcome given to me, especially from the girls. I started my speech by quipping that, no wonder the girls were hysterical. In front of them stood a 6 foot 2 inches tall, handsome “young” man, not a 5 foot, dark-skinned, bald guy. The girls started shouting and chanting various slogans. Afterwards I met many students beaming with pleasure. They told me that, despite my stature and respect, I had remained the most humble and kind person they had ever met.

2) From the College we went to the Lahore Bar Association’s main office, “Aiwan-e-Adlia”. It was like a madhouse. Thousands of lawyers were there to welcome me with garlands and rose petals. It became a herculean task just to get into the main hall and to reach the podium. The hall was not very spacious and everyone was keen to get in and listen to my speech. No revolution or change of government in Pakistan has ever taken place without the support of the Lahore Bar Association. It is the largest one in Asia. Due to the very large number of lawyers present and the limited space available, it was rather claustrophobic. I had to be extremely careful to avoid any injury as I am still taking Warfarin, which makes the blood very thin and increases the risk of major excessive bleeding. In my speech I told the lawyers that, since elections were just around the corner, they should mobilize themselves and find good candidates to field and that we should get rid of the corrupt, inefficient present lot. Many people had made huge sacrifices for Pakistan and when it faced mortal danger, I gave up a comfortable life and bright future in Europe to come back and save the country from an Indian threat. Together with my dedicated colleagues, we managed to make it a nuclear and missile power. We are now the 7th nuclear power in the world and the first in the Islamic World. I exhorted the lawyers not to damage the reputation of their profession by street brawls, and attacking the police and judges. They should always maintain the sanctity of their noble profession.

After this function we went to the Lahore Gymkhana, where my dear friend of long standing, Brig(R) Inamul Haq, had arranged lunch for us. Many notables from Lahore (i.e. Prof.Dr. Mujahid Kamran, Mr. Mujeebur Rahman Shami, Prof.Dr. Iqbal Qureshi, former VC of Hamdard University and Rector of the GIK Institute, etc.) were present. Finally, after the PIA afternoon flight had been cancelled, I reached Islamabad at 9.30 p.m.

Brother Sarwar, there had been much speculation and media reports that I was going to make some very important announcement, such as either joining a political party or launching my own party. You must be aware how dirty politics are in this country. I spoke of the grave situation, the financial collapse, the law and order situation, unemployment, load shedding, corruption, inflation, etc. in the country and the dire need of getting rid of the present corrupt mafia. I told them how I gave up everything in Europe and came to Pakistan to help save it from further disintegration. We managed to make Pakistan’s defence impregnable and saved it from sudden death. How then can we now sit idle and see it going to the dogs? I told them to get ready, tighten their belts and, if things don’t improve soon, we should go all out to get rid of these corrupt rulers in the next elections. I would be with them and participate in this noble cause.

Best regards,

Dr. A.Q. Khan