A Complete Blog on All Type of Social and Moral issues Relating To Religion -Politics.Discrimination
Fighting For Peace
No Racist Post
Always Preach Love No Hatred
Admin on Facebook Page
Pakistan Old Pic Lovers
As a sign of the new morality being ushered in Pakistan, General Zia's latest coup has been to close down the country's first-ever casino before its formal opening. The massive, red sandstone structure that was to be a unique hall of pleasure overlooking Karachi's Clifton beach will now be used for 'constructive and educational purposes'.
Built at a cost of Rs 5.5 crore, the casino's completion was delayed during the countrywide disturbances that broke out in early 1977. Spread over an area of over 5,000 sq yds, the largest and most expensive pleasure palace this side of the Suez was designed to provide restaurants, nightclubs, gambling and residential facilities. Elaborate arrangements for call girls were also made. The idea was to cater for the growing Arab clientele that is being diverted to Karachi after the fall of Beirut. The project, mooted during Bhutto's regime, was launched by a Karachi firm called El-Adil International, whose owner, the young and dapper Tufail Shaikh, was known to be a close friend of Bhutto's.
Shaikh, who also owned a hotel and penthouse night-club in Karachi, was once known as the Hugh Heffner of Pakistan. It was allegedly through Bhutto's good offices that he succeeded in procuring a loan of Rs 2 crore from a consortium of five nationalized Pakistan banks for the project. The loan was originally to be invested in a residential hotel to be built in the area. But what materialized was a pleasure dome for which special bye-laws were framed. According to the exclusive laws no government official below a certain level, such as a superintendent of police or director of excise, could enter the casino premises for any sort of check.
The defunct casino is one of the many extravagances that are dying a natural death under the martial law government. While a martial law inquiry team headed by Brigadier Qamarul Islam has recommended the government take over the casino, a spate of foreign hotel chains are sweating it out to complete their hotels under construction.
In Karachi alone, three five-star luxury hotels, the Hilton, Sheraton and a Hyatt Regency hotel, are underway to take the heavy load off the Intercontinental group which operates in the four major Pakistani cities.
There is a price, however, for overcoming most restrictions. Current prices for smuggled Indian liquor in Pakistan's cities are high. Ever since the former prime minister introduced prohibition before the elections last year, Indian liquor has fetched astronomical prices. A bottle of Solan No. 1, or Black Knight, which before prohibition cost Rs 50, is now available with difficulty at Rs 200-250. Smuggled Scotch in Karachi is priced at Rs 350 a bottle.
Smuggling across the Indo-Pak border has been on the increase since the trade route between the two countries opened. Among the most prized items of contraband from India are whisky-of which according to one estimate 20,000 bottles are smuggled each day-betel leaves, bicycle spare parts, and even electric bulbs. A flourishing smuggler stationed in Lahore is said to have established a distillery just across the border on Indian territory, apparently working round the clock to meet the insatiable demand for whisky.
DR ALLAMA IQBAL, QUAID E AZAM AND IJJTEHAD IN ISLAM
A minority who got enriched by opposing the Creation of Heaven on Earth
It is fashionable with Mullahs these days to rave about Dr Allama Iqbal. In fact they hate his very soul, due to their own Satanic urges. Who put them on the TV screens? Meaningless discussions to confuse people and spread anarchy of thought. The dynamism of Islam their fossilized brains cannot even understand. Halwa Puri is their key words of success. The man in the mosque always used to be poor and dependent on his food even to the neighbours of the area. I remember regular food going from our house to the poor man administering the mosque rituals. The posh life these Mullahs lead now proves that they have undisclosed treasures and hordes of wealth. Where it comes from? The foreign lobbies who are allergic to Pakistan.
I know that Dr Allama Iqbal’s message was revolutionary, to go back to the ORIGINAL ISLAM of the Arabs, by reference to the Quran alone. The issues picked over the years should be discarded and ijjtehad done. A serious blow to Mullahs. I came across a PRESS CUTTING of the lifetime time of Dr Allama Iqbal, when the Imam of Wazeer Khan Mosque issued the FATWA of KAFIR on him. This was of course made possible by influx of the NEW MUTAVALLIS OF THE MOSQUE, engendered by Deputy Commissioner Charles Aitchison, later who became the Governor General of Punjab too. Of course the same man, who founded the Aitchison College Lahore, and was determined to raze the Mausoleum of Emperor Jahangeer to the ground as its new site. See my book “The Legacy of Nawab Wazeer Khan Lahori”. Most of these civil servants were Freemasons, and Aitchison was present when the Freemason Hall was built in Lahore n 1859 (separate blog).
The spirit of Dr Allama Iqbal these Mullahs have undermined all their life. It is time to put some common sense in them.
AK Hangal dies at 97, bigwigs skip funeral : Not a single big name from the film industry turned up for the cremation of veteran character actor A K Hangal on Sunday. The 97-year-old, a veteran of over 225 films, passed away early in the morning at Asha Parekh hospital in Vile Parle following a brief illness aggravated by a fracture of his thigh bone. Only character actors like Rakesh Bedi and Raza Murad and friends like Ila Arun were present for the last rites. But that didn't really matter to a man who had dedicated his life to theatre, cinema and social issues. Some theatre enthusiasts posted comments on social networking sites. One of these said that another acting academy had shut down. Hangal was one of the most endearing old men of the film industry with roles in Sholay, Namak Haram and Shaukeen. His one-liner from Sholay, 'Itna sannata kyon hain bhai', achieved cult status.
Sholay's Rahim Chacha had to depend on Bollywood for aid to fight illness. But the actor, who swore by leftist philosophy, believed that the state needs to accept the responsibilities of senior citizens. His son Vijay said, "My father was highly spirited and fought till the end. He survived even after life support was taken off." He added, "He even shot a small scene for the TV serial Madhubala despite his poor health. The moment the camera was switched on, his energy came back.'' Fashion designer Riyaz Gangji, who would visit the actor almost every day, said, "When I asked him if he wanted life support back, he said no.'' Hangal had walked the ramp for the designer last year. Murad said, "The actors would've come if a political party summoned them. But they didn't have an hour to spare to pay their last respects to the man who gave 50 years to the industry and worked with all top stars.'' Hangal started his film career rather late. The actor, who participated in the freedom movement, started off as a tailor. He got associated with actors like Balraj Sahni, Sardar Jafri and Kaifi Azmi, who persuaded him to act. He entered the film industry at the age of 50 with Basu Bhattacharya's Teesri Kasam.
Though new to the industry, he was not afraid to express his anger over Raj Kapoor walking onto the set late. Hangal was very vocal about his political views. He had faced a ban on his film career after the Shiv Sena objected to his attending a function organized by the Pakistan consulate in Mumbai in the 1990s. A Communist Party of India member, Hangal continued to renew his membership every year. Hangal acted in over 225 films in his film career spanning over four decades. He played the roles of a father, uncle or housekeeper to many a big star, including Jaya Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan. He had cut down on acting for 10 years, but did small roles in Aamir Khan's Lagaan and Shah Rukh Khan's Paheli. The actor's financial condition became an issue with his health falling and his son Vijay having to stop work to look after his father. After reports about Hangal's poor financial condition, the information and broadcasting ministry announced a plan for health insurance of retired actors which has not yet materialized. Vijay said, "The industry's aid did help us pull through all his medical needs. Though film industry bigwigs were not there, his friends from IPTA and character actors attended the cremation. We are planning a condolence meeting at Prithvi Theatre at 4pm on Monday.''
Bollywood Comes finally for A K Hangal
AK Hangal: Bal Thackeray once called him a traitor Hangal was drawn to Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in India. He started working with Balraj Sahni and Kaifi Azmi in IPTA. In his late 40s, Hangal was offered the part of Raj Kapoor's brother in 1966 film "Teesri Kasam" by director Basu Bhattacharya but his scenes were removed from the film. There was no looking back for him after that. He starred in over 200 films. His mostly played roles of father, uncle, grandfather or that of a meek and harassed old man, an image he could never get rid off. The veteran actor suffered a political backlash in 1993 when he applied for visa to visit his birthplace in Pakistan. He was invited and attended the Pakistan day celebrations by the consulate in Mumbai thereby incurring the wrath of the Shiv Sena. Shiv Sena Supremo Bal Thackeray took offence and called him a traitor. A call to boycott his films was made, his effigies were burnt and his scenes were deleted from films. He bounced back after two years with character roles in Amitabh Bachchan's home production "Tere Mere Sapne" and Aamir Khan's "Lagaan". He last shot for Shah Rukh Khan starrer "Paheli" in 2005.
He was awarded Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Hindi cinema in 2006.
The actor was in news last year for living a life in penury. His son Vijay, a retired still cameraman in Bollywood, appealed for help after failing to meet Hangal's medical expenses. Several Bollywood celebrities like the Bachchans, producer-director Vipul Shah, and actors Mithun Chakraborty, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan came forward to help him. He returned to face the studio lights again recently after a gap of seven years for TV show 'Madhubala'. Having reached the sets on wheelchair, Hangal was not sure if he would be able to handle it physically. But he came in his elements once the cameras started rolling. He has a 74-year-old son Vijay with late wife Manorama.
Tahir Ashrafi, on one hand claim to defend Mujahideen but on the other hand his dirty links are not just with RAW backed SAFMA but also with UN and French intelligence and he has been serving their interests for ages. Here we produce a confidential letter written by a UN officer just before the UN approved invasion of Afghanistan by the Zionists. Here, these UN Zionists are writing to Perzez Musharraf to send Tahir Ashrafi to Mullah Omar on the Bamiyan statue issues. This fasadi mullah was to plead the case of UN's french director, most probably to gather intelligence on Taliban before the US led invasion. Today, he works for SAFMA and RAW gathering intelligence on Mujahideen in Pakistan. This letter by UN clearly shows how much the crusaders trust this snake. Now he has also become the champion of Khatm e Nubuwwat also. Astaghfurullah!
Zaid Hamid - Lies and Deception Exposed
ISLAMABAD, Sept 16: Pakistan hopes to convince the Taliban to hand over Osama bin Laden in a last-ditch effort to ward off an impending US-led allied attack on Afghanistan, but deteriorating relations between the two leave very little hope that the initiative will be successful. The Musharraf government has absolutely no doubt in its mind that the US holds Osama and his protector, Mulla omar, fully responsible for the Sept 11 kamikaze attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. It is sending a high-ranking delegation to meet Mulla Umar, headed by General Mehmood of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), to underline the point that the impending attack can destroy Afghanistan totally, and lead to a human catastrophe of unimaginable scale. General Mehmood, who was in Washington when the US faced its morning of terror, has been conveyed in no uncertain terms by the US officials what the mood in the United States is. Pakistan's plea is that while it is difficult choice for the Taliban but the costs of persisting with holding on to the line that proof of Osama's crime has to be produced before them to enable them to take a decision on the issue, will be death and destruction, and eventual fall of the Taliban government.
At present according to government sources, the US does not make a difference between Mulla Umar's men and Osama bin Laden unless the Taliban supreme leader severs his links with him and hands him over to the US. For Pakistan the considerations behind making the desperate effort to convince the Taliban to show flexibility are domestic, regional and global. Pakistani decision-makers are worried about a severe domestic backlash from the Taliban lobbies in the mosques and the bazaars. Sunday's rallies all over the country - more are planned today -- against the anticipated US strikes are just a tip of the iceberg of larger trouble that can erupt when the US military operation starts. That is why all the law-enforcement agencies have been given additional powers and a fully-fledged internal security plan, prepared at General Headquarters, and approved by President Gen Pervez Musharraf has been put in place. The governors of all four provinces, along with the respective area corps commanders, have been readied to meet with any exceptional law and order situation with standing orders to use force where necessary. Even more stringent measures have been taken for Karachi and the border areas of the NWFP and Balochistan, where the Afghan refugees are present in the thousands. Special monitoring and surveillance of the sectarian groups is being done and all possibilities of a nation-wide reaction by religious parties have been worked out. But still fears are that this may not be enough. The Taliban threat delivered by their ambassador to Pakistan, Mullah Abdus Salam Zaeef on Saturday of invading any regional country that will provide bases or air space to the American-led strike force, has been taken seriously by the government.
Pakistan officials say that they are extremely disappointed with this statement. They see this as audacious and uncalled for and a sad reflection on the sense of gratitude that the Taliban should have, considering that Pakistan, at grave risk to its own image, has been sticking its neck out for them. More than that Pakistani officials see in the threat a real potential for the Taliban in a moment of crisis using their Madaris links inside Pakistan to create upheaval and unrest. Pakistan officials also believe that there is a real danger of sectarian terrorism erupting in the wake of the strikes because the Taliban continue to harbor some of the most wanted sectarian criminals on their soil. The other danger to which the Musharraf government is paying attention to is that of random terrorism of the sort that Pakistan has experienced emanating primarily from Afghanistan. In the 80s and early 90s Pakistan cities and bazaars were repeatedly hit by bombs that went off in crowded places killing hundreds of people. However, Pakistan's biggest threat comes not from the ordinary Taliban or sympathisers of Osama bin Laden, but from that close circuit of friends who have the resources to carry out massive operations inside its territory. If the case that the US is building against Osama bin Laden has any factual basis, Pakistan is the most vulnerable state in the world to terrorism. That is why, some government military observers believe, intelligence sharing with the US is of vital importance. Because it will be Pakistan that will have to deal with the blow-back of the inferno that Afghanistan will become when the military operation starts against Afghanistan.
Just as worrying are regional concerns for the Musharraf government. Pakistan is mortally fearful of the possibility of the facilities that it will grant to the US troops being misused. Military analysts admit that Pakistan will bear the brunt of a fully-fledged military operation in its neighbourhood because of its geo-graphic proximity to Afghanistan. More precisely, when the operation starts the sheer scale of it and the confusion it may generate can afford, according to senior military officials, an opportunity to take the risk of sabotaging Pakistan's strategic assets - the nuclear installations. This is the reason why extra measures have been taken to guard these installations and the air force has been instructed to hunt down any aerial danger in Pakistan's air-space. The details of which air-path can be used by the US-led forces have been worked out and there are other routes that are out-bounds for any alien aircraft. Pakistan policy-makers are also concerned about the possibility of an accidental or misfired hit at any of Pakistan's vital installations. Modern weapons especially aerial weapons that can move in all the wrong directions. Pakistan is equally concerned over the new political arrangement in Afghanistan. The strikes are surely going to leave the Taliban totally destroyed. For decades Pakistan has invested in the policy of having a friendly government in Afghanistan, and the Taliban, when they had not become an international pariah, were the closest it could come to that idea.
However, with the Taliban likely to be destroyed as a political entity in the wake of the strikes and the movement disintegrating along its tribal and local lines, the emerging scenario can lead to a political arrangement that would not be according to the wish list of Pakistan. Pakistan officials still hope that they will be able to have a say in the final shape of the new Afghanistan government -- if it did come to that point. In fact this is one of the many issues that Pakistan has put forward to the US in its on-going discussions with Washington. However, it is not sure yet what will be the response of the international community, particularly the US, to Pakistan playing such a role because of late Islamabad has been, rightly or wrongly, seen by a majority of the countries around the world as part of the problem in Afghanistan. But the most immediate concern for the Musharraf government is the US pressure. Close associates of President General Pervez Musharraf say that he is under tremendous pressure because "events are moving at a bewildering pace." Saturday night's telephone call from the US President George Bush was not just to thank him on his support but to also ask what has Pakistan decided on providing logistical assistance to the military operation. The US is not keeping according to the schedule of Pakistan's final decision; it wants a decision and a final detailed yes according to its own plans - not all of which have been shared with Pakistan. Pakistan according to some officials wants the US to also provide it with some incentives: economic and military assistance, removal of sanctions, debt relief, active role in helping it to solve the Kashmir problem and no role of India and Israel in this military operation. However, the signals from Washington are that while these demands will be considered sympathetically, at this point in time the only incentive that is available to Pakistan is negative. "Pakistan has the option to live in the 21st century or the Stone Age" is roughly how US officials are putting their case. The pressure is being added by advice from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries that have sent message and emissaries to convey their sentiments to General Pervez Musharraf. Against this background, Pakistan's best hope is that its delegation will come back with the good news of Taliban changing its position on Osama bin Laden
2011: JI sees Taseer’s assassin in ‘seventh heaven’ Shamim Bano Wednesday, January 05, 2011 In a shockingly blunt endorsement of Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer’s assassination, Ameer Jamat-e-Islami in Sindh Asadullah Bhutto has declared that the assassin will directly go to the “seventh heaven”. He said this after a press conference addressed by JI Ameer Munawar Hasan at Idara-e-Noor-e-Haq on Tuesday. The press conference ended abruptly when a JI spokesman Sarfaraz Ahmad broke the news of Taseer’s assassination to Munawar. “Is he alive?” was his first reaction. “Whoever has killed him is a pious man and will go directly to heaven,” replied Bhutto to a question put forward by this correspondent. He even went on to say that Taseer would not have got killed if the government had replaced him. “Aasia Bibi will suffer the same fate if the punishment awarded to her by the court for using derogatory remarks against Hazrat Mohammed Mustafa (PBUH) is not implemented,” he added. Earlier, during the press conference, Syed Munawar Hasan said that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) should also clear its position in Sindh after parting ways with the government at the Centre. He said that Altaf Hussain’s party’s stand would sound vague unless all members of his party resign, including the governor, resign and sit on the opposition benches. He said Altaf had twice contacted him on the phone to discuss the political situation. He was in favour of the government completing its five-year tenure, but he added the people should be provided with some relief by reducing the inflation rate and addressing unemployment issues. He informed the media that his party would stage a sit-in in Peshawar on January 23 against the forced disappearances and drone attacks.
Rouhollah Mousavi Khomeini was born on 24 September 1902 (20 Jamadi al-Akhir 1320), the anniversary of the birth of Hazrat Fatima, in the small town of Khomein, some 160 kilometres to the southwest of Qom. He was the child of a family with a long tradition of religious scholarship. His ancestors, descendants of Imam Mousa al-Kazim, the seventh Imam of the Ahl al-Bayt, had migrated towards the end of the eighteenth century from their original home in Neishapour (in Khorasan province of Iran) to the Lucknow region of northern India. There they settled and began devoting themselves to the religious instruction and guidance of the region's predominantly Shi'i population.
Khomeini's grandfather, Seyed Ahmad, left Lucknow (according to a statement of Khomeini's elder brother, Seyed Morteza Pasandideh, his point of departure was Kashmir, not Lucknow) some time in the middle of the nineteenth century on pilgrimage to the tomb of Hazrat 'Ali in Najaf. While in Najaf, Seyed Ahmad met Yousef Khan, a prominent citizen of Khomein. Accepting his invitation, he decided to settle in Khomein to assume responsibility for the religious needs of its citizens and also took Yousef Khan's daughter in marriage.
Seyed Ahmad, by the time of death, the date of which is unknown, had two children: a daughter by the name of Sahiba, and Seyed Moustafa Hindi, born in 1885, the father of Khomeini. Seyed Moustafa began his religious education in Esfahan and continued his advanced studies in Najaf and Samarra (this corresponded to a pattern of preliminary study in Iran followed by advanced study in the "Atabat", the shrine cities of Iraq; Ayatollah Khomeini was in fact the first religious leader of prominence whose formation took place entirely in Iran). After accomplishing his advanced studies he returned to Khomein, and then married with Hajar (mother of Rouhollah Khomeini).
In March 1903, Khomeini when was just 5 months old lost his father. And in 1918, Khomeini lost both his aunt, Sahiba, who had played a great role in his early upbringing, and his mother, Hajar. Responsibility for the family then devolved on his eldest brother, Seyed Mourteza (later to be known as Ayatollah Pasandideh).
Khomeini began his education by memorizing the Qoran at a maktab (traditional religious school). In 1920-21, Seyed Mourteza sent the Rouhollah Khomeini to the city of Arak (or Sultanabad, as it was then known) in order for him to benefit from the more ample educational resources available there.
Young Rouhollah Khomeini
In 1923, Khomeini arrived in Qom and devoted himself to completing the preliminary stage of madreseh (school or academy) education.
Khomeini did not engage in any political activities during the 1930's. He believed that the leadership of political activities should be in the hands of the foremost religious scholars, and he was therefore obliged to accept the decision of Ayatollah Haeri to remain relatively passive toward the measures taken by Reza Shah against the traditions and culture of Islam in Iran. In any event, as a still junior figure in the religious institution in Qom, he would have been in no position to mobilize popular opinion on a national scale.
In 1955, a nationwide campaign against the Baha'i sect was launched, for which the Khomeini sought to recruit Ayatollah Boroujerdi's (he was the most prominent religious leader in Qom after the death of Ayatollah Haeri) support, but he had little success.
Ayatollah Khomeini therefore concentrated during the years of Ayatollah Boroujerdi's leadership in Qom on giving instruction in fiqh (Islamic science) and gathering round him students who later became his associates in the movement that led to the overthrow of the Pahlavi Dynasty, not only Ayatollah Mutahhari and Ayatollah Muntaziri, but younger men such as Hojatolislam Muhammad Javad Bahonar and Hojatolislam Ali Akbar Hashimi-Rafsanjani.
The emphases of the Ayatollah Khomeini's activity began to change with the death of Ayatollah Boroujerdi on March 31, 1961, for he now emerged as one of the successors to Boroujerdi's position of leadership. This emergence was signaled by the publication of some of his writings on fiqh, most importantly the basic handbook of religious practice entitled, like others of its genre, Tozih al-Masael. He was soon accepted as Marja-e Taqlid by a large number of Iranian Shi'is.
In the autumn of 1962, the government promulgated new laws governing elections to local and provincial councils, which deleted the former requirement that those elected be sworn into office on the Qoran. Seeing in this a plan to permit the infiltration of public life by the Baha'is, Imam Khomeini telegraphed both the Mohammad Reza Shah and the prime minister of the day, warning them to desist from violating both the law of Islam and the Iranian Constitution of 1907, failing which the 'ulama' (religious scholars) would engage in a sustained campaign of protest.
In January 1963, the Shah announced a six-point program of reform called the White Revolution, an American-inspired package of measures designed to give his regime a liberal and progressive facade. Ayatollah Khomeini summoned a meeting of his colleagues in Qom to press upon them the necessity of opposing the Shah's plans. They sent Ayatollah Kamalvand, to see the Shah and gauge his intentions. Although the Shah showed no inclination to retreat or compromise, it took further pressure by Ayatollah Khomeini on the other senior 'ulama' of Qom to persuade them to decree a boycott of the referendum that the Shah had planned to obtain the appearance of popular approval for his White Revolution. Ayatollah Khomeini issued on January 22, 1963 a strongly worded declaration denouncing the Shah and his plans. Two days later Shah took armored column to Qom, and he delivered a speech harshly attacking the 'ulama' as a class.
Ayatollah Khomeini continued his denunciation of the Shah's programs, issuing a manifesto that also bore the signatures of eight other senior scholars. In it he listed the various ways in which the Shah had violated the constitution, condemned the spread of moral corruption in the country, and accused the Shah of comprehensive submission to America and Israel. He also decreed that the Norooz celebrations for the Iranian year 1342 (which fell on March 21, 1963) be cancelled as a sign of protest against government policies.
On the afternoon of 'Ashoura (June 3, 1963), Imam Khomeini delivered a speech at the Feyziyeh madreseh in which he drew parallels between the Umayyad caliph Yazid and the Shah and warned the Shah that if he did not change his ways the day would come when the people would offer up thanks for his departure from the country. The immediate effect of the Imam's speech was, however, his arrest two days later at 3 o'clock in the morning by a group of commandos who hastily transferred him to the Qasr prison in Tehran. As dawn broke on June 3, the news of his arrest spread first through Qom and then to other cities. In Qom, Tehran, Shiraz, Mashhad and Varamin, masses of angry demonstrators were confronted by tanks and paratroopers. It was not until six days later that order was fully restored. This uprising of 15 Khordad 1342 marked a turning point in Iranian history.
Ayatollah Khomeini going to exile
After nineteen days in the Qasr prison, Ayatollah Khomeini was moved first to the 'Eshratabad' military base and then to a house in the 'Davoudiyeh' section of Tehran where he was kept under surveillance.
He was released on April 7, 1964, and returned to Qom.
The Shah's regime continued its pro-American policies and in the autumn of 1964, it concluded an agreement with the United States that provided immunity from prosecution for all American personnel in Iran and their dependents. This occasioned the Khomeini to deliver a speech against the Shah. He denounced the agreement as surrender of Iranian independence and sovereignty, made in exchange for a $200 million loan that would be of benefit only to the Shah and his associates, and described as traitors all those in the Majlis who voted in favor of it; the government lacked all legitimacy, he concluded.
Shortly before dawn on November 4, 1964, again commandos surrounded the Ayatollah Khomeini house in Qom, arrested him, and this time took him directly to Mehrabad airport in Tehran for immediate exile to Turkey on the hope that in exile he would fade from popular memory. As Turkish law forbade Ayatollah Khomeini to wear the cloak and turban of the Muslim scholar, an identity which was integral to his being. However, On September 5, 1965, Ayatollah Khomeini left Turkey for Najaf in Iraq, where he was destined to spend thirteen years.
Ayatollah Khomeini and his son Mostafa in exile (Iraq)
Once settled in Najaf, Ayatollah Khomeini began teaching fiqh at the Sheikh Mourteza Ansari madreseh. At this madreseh he delivered, between January 21 and February 8, 1970, his lectures on Velayat-e faqeeh, the theory of governance and Islamic Leadership (the text of these lectures was published in Najaf, not long after their delivery, under the title Velayat-e faqeeh ya Hukumat-i Islami). The text of the lectures on Velayat-e faqeeh was smuggled back to Iran by visitors who came to see the Khomeini in Najaf.
The most visible sign of the popularity of Ayatollah Khomeini in the pre-revolutionary years, above all at the heart of the religious institution in Qom, came in June 1975 on the anniversary of the uprising of 15 Khordad. Students at the Feyziyeh madreseh began holding a demonstration within the confines of the building, and a sympathetic crowd assembled outside. Both gatherings continued for three days until they were attacked military forces, with numerous deaths resulting. Ayatollah Khomeini reacted with a message in which he declared the events in Qom and similar disturbances elsewhere to be a sign of hope that "freedom and liberation from the bonds of imperialism" were at hand. The beginning of the revolution came indeed some two and a half years later.
In January 7, 1978 when an article appeared in the semi-official newspaper Ittila'at attacking him in such terms as a traitor working together with foreign enemies of the country. The next day a furious mass protest took place in Qom; it was suppressed by the security forces with heavy loss of life. This was the first in a series of popular confrontations that, gathering momentum throughout 1978, soon turned into a vast revolutionary movement, demanding the overthrow of the Pahlavi regime and the installation of an Islamic government.
Ayatollah Khomeini arrives in Tehran. He is received by officers of Royal Air Force
Shah decided to seek the deportation of Ayatollah Khomeini from Iraq, the agreement of the Iraqi government was obtained at a meeting between the Iraqi and Iranian foreign ministers in New York, and on September 24, 1978, the Khomeini's house in Najaf was surrounded by troops. He was informed that his continued residence in Iraq was contingent on his abandoning political activity, a condition he rejected. On October 3, he left Iraq for Kuwait, but was refused entry at the border. After a period of hesitation in which Algeria, Lebanon and Syria were considered as possible destinations, Ayatollah Khomeini embarked for Paris. Once arrived in Paris, the Khomeini took up residence in the suburb of Neauphle-le-Chateau in a house that had been rented for him by Iranian exiles in France. From now on the journalists from across the world now made their way to France, and the image and the words of the Ayatollah Khomeini soon became a daily feature in the world's media.
On January 3, 1979, Shapour Bakhtiar of the National Front (Jabhe-yi Melli) was appointed prime minister to replace General Azhari. And on January 16, Shah left Iran.
The Ayatollah Khomeini embarked on a chartered airliner of Air France on the evening of January 31 and arrived in Tehran the following morning. He was welcomed by a very popular joy. On February 5, he introduced Mehdi Bazargan as interim prime minister (yet Bakhtiyar was appointed prime minister of Shah).
Ayatollah Khomeini's last years
On February 10, Ayatollah Khomeini ordered that the curfew should be defied. The next day the Supreme Military Council withdrew its support from Bakhtiyar, and on February 12, 1979, following the sporadic street gunfight all organs of the regime, political, administrative, and military, finally collapsed. The revolution had triumphed.
On March 30 and 31, a nationwide referendum resulted in a massive vote in favor of the establishment of an Islamic Republic. Ayatollah Khomeini proclaimed the next day, April 1, 1979, as the "first day of God's government". He obtained the title of "Imam" (highest religious rank in Shia). With the establishment of Islamic Republic of Iran he became Supreme Leader (Vali-e Faqeeh).
He settled in Qom but on January 23, 1980, Ayatollah Khomeini was brought from Qom to Tehran to receive heart treatment. After thirty-nine days in hospital, he took up residence in the north Tehran suburb of Darband , and on April 22 he moved into a modest house in Jamaran, another suburb to the north of the capital. A closely guarded compound grew up around the house, and it was there that he spent the rest of his life as absolute ruler of Iran.
Ayatollah Khomeini, on June 3, 1989, after eleven days in hospital for an operation to stop internal bleeding, lapsed into a critical condition and died.
Ayatollah Khomeini in his 10 years of leadership established a theocratic rule over Iran. He did not fulfil his pre-revolution promises to the people of Iran but instead he started to marginalize and crash the opposition groups and those who opposed the clerical rules. He ordered establishment of many institutions to consolidate power and safeguard the cleric leadership. During his early years in power he launched the Cultural Revolution in order to Islamize the whole country. Many people were laid off, and lots of books were revised or burnt according to the new Islamic values. Newly established Islamic Judiciary system sentenced many Iranians to death and long-term imprisonment as they were in opposition to those radical changes.
MQM`s strange recipe to end feudalism The MQM, which often complains of Taliban`s growing presence in Karachi and is unhappy for being unable to convince its coalition partners to retain the local government system of the Musharraf era at least in Sindh, has surprised everybody by suggesting an unthinkable remedy for the country`s ills that every parliamentarian has only recently vowed to reject and fight back by adopting the 18th Amendment. The MQM chief Altaf Hussain has publicly urged `patriotic generals` to impose a sort of martial law in the country and bring to an end the hegemony of corrupt politicians and landlords. It immediately caused a political storm. Several politicians belonging to both the coalition government and the opposition have reacted instantly and condemned the statement, calling it irresponsible and mischievous. Civil society has also rejected Altaf Hussain`s utterance and reminded him that democracy is the only way to move forward. It was during a telephonic address to a gathering of MQM workers in Karachi on Sunday last that Mr Hussain had floated this proposal which his local deputies later insisted was the right step to save the country. The political pundits are in a fix as to what has prompted the leader of the urban-based party to issue such a statement that can lead to dangerous consequences. However, the Karachi-based MQM leaders are facing difficulty in keeping a bold face to defend what their London-based chief has spoken out in his usual screaming tone a well-calculated policy statement, of which apparently they were not informed in advance and were equally taken aback like other citizens. He was in fact addressing the real stakeholders of power in the country seeking their intervention to put the country`s affairs back on the rail but at a time extremely inappropriate for such an invitation. The country is struggling to overcome effects of the worst ever floods in a century. The MQM, a coalition partner of the PPP in Sindh and at the Centre and holding some important portfolios in the two cabinets, boasts of being a secular, democratic and liberal party and usually talks of sweeping changes in the current social system to eliminate feudalism and provide greater facilities to the middle and lower middle classes.
Douglas MacArthur January 26, 1880 – April 5, 1964 (aged 84) Chief of Staff of the United States Army
In April 1951, MacArthur's habitual disregard of his superiors led to a crisis. He sent a letter to Representative Joe Martin (R-Massachusetts), the House Minority Leader, disagreeing with President Truman's policy of limiting the Korean war to avoid a larger war with China. He also sent an ultimatum to the Chinese Army which destroyed President Truman's cease-fire efforts. This, and similar letters and statements, were seen by Truman as a violation of the American constitutional principle that military commanders are subordinate to civilian leadership, and as an attempt to usurp the President's authority to make foreign policy. MacArthur had ignored this principle out of necessity while Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers (SCAP) in Japan. MacArthur at this time had not been back to the United States for eleven years. [Reference/Quote David Halberstam - American Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author known for his early work on the Vietnam War/General Douglas MacArthur Farewell Address
Harry S. Truman - 33rd President of the United States In office April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953
By this time President Truman decided MacArthur was insubordinate, and relieved him of command on April 11, 1951, leading to a storm of controversy. MacArthur was succeeded by General Matthew Ridgway, and eventually by General Mark Wayne Clark, who signed the armistice which declared a ceasefire to the Korean War. General Ridgway reported directly to MacArthur before replacing him.
President Harry S. Truman's draft order terminating MacArthur as Supreme Commander, Allied Powers, Commander in Chief, Far East; and Commanding General, U.S. Army, Far East.
Matthew Bunker Ridgway March 3, 1895 – July 26, 1993 (aged 98) Chief of Staff of the United States Army
Ridgway commented on MacArthur's strengths:
“ I had the deepest respect for MacArthur's abilities, for his courage and for his tactical brilliance.... I had profound respect for his leadership, his quick mind and his unusual skill at going straight to the main point of any subject and illuminating it so swiftly that the slowest mind could not fail to grasp it. He was, despite any weakness he may have shown, a truly great military man, a great statesman, and a gallant leader. "
But Ridgway also understood his weaknesses:
“ ...the hunger for praise that led him on some occasions to claim or accept credit for deeds he had not performed, or to disclaim responsibility for mistakes that were clearly his own; the love of the limelight that continually prompted him to pose before the public as the actual commander on the spot...his tendency to cultivate the isolation that genius seems to require, until it became a sort of insulation...that deprived him of the critical comment and objective appraisals a commander needs...; the headstrong quality...that sometimes led him to persist in a cause in defiance of all logic; [and] a faith in his own judgment that created an aura of infallibility and that finally led him close to insubordination. "
1951: MacArthur fired - Ridgway takes over
US President Harry S Truman has dismissed General Douglas MacArthur as commander of United Nations and US forces in the Far East after disagreements over foreign policy in Korea.
General MacArthur will be replaced by Lieutenant-General Matthew Ridgway, appointed as head of the 8th Army in Korea by General MacArthur himself last December.
At 0100 local time, Washington issued the official announcement of the general's dismissal along with several documents showing he had ignored orders to refrain from making political statements.
The move has shocked the American public and angered Republican politicians who revere General MacArthur as a distinguished soldier and leader.
In a broadcast to the nation tonight, the president acknowledged the general was one of America's greatest military commanders. But he added: "The cause of world peace is more important than any individual."
The cause of world peace is more important than any individual.
President Harry S Truman
Last month, General MacArthur called for an attack on China itself unless Communist forces laid down their arms in Korea.
Tonight President Truman re-affirmed his belief that extending the battle beyond Korea could lead to a third world war if the Soviet Union decided to enter the fray.
"A number of events have made it evident that General MacArthur did not agree with that policy," he said. "I have therefore considered it essential to relieve General MacArthur so that there would be no doubt or confusion as to the real purpose and aim of our policy."
He also made it clear he was ready to negotiate with the North Koreans on a peace settlement as long as fighting stopped.
Republican leaders in Congress and the Senate expressed their anger saying the dismissal had endangered national unity and they called for Congress to investigate foreign policy in Korea.
General MacArthur's successor, Lt-General Ridgway, is a highly respected paratrooper commander who jumped with his men in World War II during the invasion of Sicily and on D-Day.
He earned many awards for bravery along with the nickname "the fighting and jumping general".
Since his arrival in Korea last year, Lt-Gen Ridgway has regrouped retreating allied forces, boosted army morale and hit back at the enemy in what he calls a "limited offensive" pushing the Communists back north across the 38th parallel.
British troops have compared him to General Montgomery in the way he inspires his men on the battlefield.
His habit of wearing a hand grenade at his shoulder is as familiar to the troops as Montgomery's beret.
Meet the Graceful Diplomat Munir Akram (Now a Columnist in Daily Dawn)
On the morning of December 10, Akram's girlfriend, Marijana Mihic (pronounced Mariana), called the emergency 911 number at 1.36 am, asking for help. She told the police dispatcher that a man, whom she identified as her husband, had smashed her head into a wall. She said that her arm also was hurting and that he was a repeat offender. The dispatcher noted, "female caller states husband has diplomatic immunity". When the NY police arrived, guns on the ready and red light flashing, at the posh address in the upper reaches of Manhattan, Mihic changed her story a bit and said that Akram, 22 years her senior, was her "boyfriend". She had tried to leave after a heated argument but he grabbed her and she fell. Police officers noticed a bruise on her head but she declined a visit to the hospital. Akram reluctantly identified himself to the police as Pakistan's UN ambassador. Reference: Sex, Rhetoric And Diplomatic ImpunityIslamabad is hard pressed to withdraw its 'diplo-basher'. New Delhi is only too relieved. by SEEMA SIROHI and AMIR MIR (27 January 2003)
Calling Davis a “diplomat” was, technically, accurate. He had been admitted into Pakistan on a diplomatic passport. But there was a dispute about whether his work in the Lahore Consulate, as opposed to the American Embassy in Islamabad, gave him full diplomatic immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. And after the shootings in Lahore, the Pakistanis were not exactly receptive to debating the finer points of international law. As they saw it, Davis was an American spy who had not been declared to the I.S.I. and whom C.I.A. officials still would not admit they controlled. General Pasha, the I.S.I. chief, spoke privately by phone and in person with Leon Panetta, then the director of the C.I.A., to get more information about the matter. He suspected that Davis was a C.I.A. employee and suggested to Panetta that the two spy agencies handle the matter quietly. Meeting with Panetta, he posed a direct question. Was Davis working for the C.I.A.? Pasha asked. No, he’s not one of ours, Panetta replied. Panetta went on to say that the matter was out of his hands, and that the issue was being handled inside State Department channels. Pasha was furious, and he decided to leave Davis’s fate in the hands of the judges in Lahore. The United States had just lost its chance, he told others, to quickly end the dispute. That the C.I.A. director would be overseeing a large clandestine network of American spies in Pakistan and then lie to the I.S.I. director about the extent of America’s secret war in the country showed just how much the relationship had unraveled since the days in 2002, when the I.S.I. teamed with the C.I.A. in Peshawar to hunt for Osama bin Laden in western Pakistan. Where had it gone so wrong? Reference: How a Single Spy Helped Turn Pakistan Against the United States
WASHINGTON, Sept 21: JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and a senator from his party were prevented from boarding a plane to the United States at Doha airport, official sources told Dawn. Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who also heads the parliament’s Kashmir Committee, was scheduled to attend an OIC committee meeting on Kashmir on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York. He was reportedly told that he could not travel to the United States because his name was on a list of persons who advocated terrorism. Federal Minister for Science and Technology Azam Khan Swati was also prevented from boarding the flight because US officials believe he provided false information to immigration officials during a previous visit to North America. Mr Swati, who once was a US citizen but had given up his citizenship in 1979, allegedly told US immigration officials that he was still a citizen. When US authorities conveyed their decision to the Pakistan Embassy in Washington, the embassy asked them to reconsider the move. US authorities agreed to allow Mr Swati to attend the General Assembly on a special arrangement reserved for visitors who otherwise cannot enter the United States, such as Iranian officials, but are allowed to attend UN meetings. An arrangement with the United Nations requires the US administration to allow all those who are invited to a UN meeting to enter New York. This entry permit, however, is not a visa and those entering New York on this permit, cannot go outside the city. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Embassy is trying to make a similar arrangement for Maulana Fazlur Rehman and hopes that he would also be able to attend the OIC meeting.
ISLAMABAD: Against his public perception of being an anti-American, Maulana Fazlur Rehman is reflected in a cable released by WikiLeaks as a frequent and cooperative American interlocutor, who professes his support for cooperation with the United States. The JUI-F leader has been described in the secret US cable as “more politician than mulla”, and “a frequent and cooperative interlocutor” with the post (US Embassy Islamabad). The Maulana is also shown as professing his “support for cooperation with the United States.” US embassy’s CDA Peter Bodde wrote in his April 3, 2008 cable, released by WikiLeaks, that Rehman, more politician than mulla, has been a prominent and legitimate figure in Pakistani politics since the 1980s. He “has publicly denounced terrorist attacks, but prefers to use negotiations rather than military force against militants. Although he is known to have contacts with Taliban and their sympathisers, he has negotiated with religious militants on the government’s behalf, garnering him criticism from the more hard-line religious sectors.”
The primary purpose of the message was to request the FBI to recall information about Fazlur Rehman, which indicated that an individual “Fasilur Rehman” believed to be associated with Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) is behind the March 2008 bombing in Islamabad. The cable said that the information suggests that Fasilur Rehman refers to political party leader Fazlur Rehman of the JUI-F. The embassy “requests that FBI recall this information from all hardcopy and database records due to discrepancies and errors in the report.” It noted that prominent Pakistan politician Fazlur Rehman is not associated with the JI, but instead leads his own political party, the JUI-F. From 2002-2007, the two parties allied with other religious parties in the coalition Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA). However, the JUI-F and JI retained separate leadership structures as well as separate political objectives and methods, it said.
The cable said that Fazlur Rehman’s JUI-F is a conservative Deobandi religious party that has recently joined the new Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) led government. The JI is a religious party that appeals to a narrow sector of the educated, conservative urban middle class. JI, which has a vibrant student wing, began as a movement for social change based on Sharia. “The JI party policy does not support violence as a means to achieve their political agenda, however, the party quietly has supported Jihad in Afghanistan and Kashmir by providing recruits from their student corps. The party does not support violence perpetuated within Pakistan, such as the recent attack on the restaurant in Islamabad. In addition, Fasilur Rehman and Fazlur Rehman are extremely common Pakistani names, making it impossible to accurately identify the individual with the prominent JUI-F politician.” In an earlier cable, the WikiLeaks showed the Maulana approaching the then US Ambassador Anne Patterson to become the Prime Minister. It was revealed that the leader of the country’s most fiercely pro-Taliban religious party, hosted a jovial dinner for Patterson at which the Maulana sought her backing to become prime minister and expressed a desire to visit America. Maulana-like Maulana’s lieutenant Abdul Ghafoor Haideri acknowledged that “All important parties in Pakistan had to get the approval of the US (to get power).” Fazl keeps regular contact with US embassy, says cable By Ansar Abbasi Tuesday, December 07, 2010
