Pakistan Declaration
Encyclopedia
The Pakistan Declaration (titled Now or Never; Are We to Live or Perish Forever?) was a pamphlet published on 28 January 1933 by Choudhary Rahmat Ali
, and was supported by Muhammad Aslam Khan Khattak
, Sahibzada Sheikh Mohd Sadiq, Inayat Ullah Khan in which the word Pakistan
was used for the first time and was presented in the round table conference in 1933. The pamphlet started with this famous sentence:
The pamphlet asked that "the five Northern units of India" - Punjab, North-West Frontier Province (Afghan Province), Kashmir, Sindh and Baluchistan (or Pakstan) become a state independent of the proposed Indian Federation.
Professor K.K.Aziz writes that "Rahmat Ali alone drafted this declaration (in which the word Pakistan was used for the first time), but in order to make it "representative" he began to look around for people who would sign it along with him. this search did not prove easy
for "so firm was the grip of 'Indianism' on our young intellectual at English universities that it took me (Rahmat Ali) more than a month to find three young men in London who ........offered to support and sign it ."
After the publication of the pamphlet, the Hindu Press vehemently criticized it, and the word 'Pakistan' used in it. Thus this word became a heated topic of debate and the name of Pakistan grew in popularity and led to the commencement of Pakistan Movement
, and consequently the creation of Pakistan as an independent state in 1947.
nationalist from Punjab, who was one of the earliest proponents of the creation of the state of Pakistan
. He is credited with creating the name "Pakistan" for a separate Muslim homeland in South Asia
. He propagated the Scheme of Pakistan with a missionary zeal since its inception in 1933. He also founded Pakistan National Movement to propagate his ideas. Being as a political thinker and an idealist, he condemned Muhammad Ali Jinnah
for accepting a smaller Pakistan in 1947. He wanted to save every Indian Muslim from Hindu domination.
He had been voicing his dissatisfaction with the creation of Smaller Pakistan
ever since his arrival in Lahore
on April 6, 1948. He was unhappy over a Smaller Pakistan than the one he had conceived in his 1933 pamphlet Now Or Never.
After the creation of Pakistan he returned to Pakistan in April 1948, planning to stay in this country, but he was ordered by the then Prime Minister Liaqat Ali Khan to leave the country. His belongings were confiscated, and he left empty-handed for England in October 1948.
He died on 3 February 1951 and was buried on 20 February at Newmarket Road Cemetery, Cambridge
, UK. As there was no one to take responsibility for his burial, Emmanuel College's Master, who had been Rahmat Ali's Tutor, himself arranged the burial in Cambridge on 20 February 1951.
Choudhary Rahmat Ali
Choudhry Rahmat Ali was a Pakistani Muslim nationalist who was one of the earliest proponents of the creation of the state of Pakistan. He is credited with creating the name "Pakistan" for a separate Muslim homeland in South Asia and is generally known as the founder of the movement for its...
, and was supported by Muhammad Aslam Khan Khattak
Muhammad Aslam Khan Khattak
Muhammad Aslam Khan Khattak was a Pakistani politician and diplomat.-Biography:He was the President of Pakistan Movement in U.K with Dr. Abdur Rahim as Vice President and Chaudhry Rehmat Ali as Secretary. This Organisation gave the world the name "PAKISTAN"...
, Sahibzada Sheikh Mohd Sadiq, Inayat Ullah Khan in which the word Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
was used for the first time and was presented in the round table conference in 1933. The pamphlet started with this famous sentence:
The pamphlet asked that "the five Northern units of India" - Punjab, North-West Frontier Province (Afghan Province), Kashmir, Sindh and Baluchistan (or Pakstan) become a state independent of the proposed Indian Federation.
Professor K.K.Aziz writes that "Rahmat Ali alone drafted this declaration (in which the word Pakistan was used for the first time), but in order to make it "representative" he began to look around for people who would sign it along with him. this search did not prove easy
for "so firm was the grip of 'Indianism' on our young intellectual at English universities that it took me (Rahmat Ali) more than a month to find three young men in London who ........offered to support and sign it ."
After the publication of the pamphlet, the Hindu Press vehemently criticized it, and the word 'Pakistan' used in it. Thus this word became a heated topic of debate and the name of Pakistan grew in popularity and led to the commencement of Pakistan Movement
Pakistan Movement
The Pakistan Movement or Tehrik-e-Pakistan refers to the historical movement to have an independent Muslim state named Pakistan created from the separation of the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent, partitioned within or outside the British Indian Empire. It had its origins in the...
, and consequently the creation of Pakistan as an independent state in 1947.
The author
The author of this famous pamphlet was Chaudhary Rahmat Ali(November 16, 1897 - February 3, 1951), a MuslimMuslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
nationalist from Punjab, who was one of the earliest proponents of the creation of the state of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. He is credited with creating the name "Pakistan" for a separate Muslim homeland in South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
. He propagated the Scheme of Pakistan with a missionary zeal since its inception in 1933. He also founded Pakistan National Movement to propagate his ideas. Being as a political thinker and an idealist, he condemned Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah was a Muslim lawyer, politician, statesman and the founder of Pakistan. He is popularly and officially known in Pakistan as Quaid-e-Azam and Baba-e-Qaum ....
for accepting a smaller Pakistan in 1947. He wanted to save every Indian Muslim from Hindu domination.
He had been voicing his dissatisfaction with the creation of Smaller Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
ever since his arrival in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
on April 6, 1948. He was unhappy over a Smaller Pakistan than the one he had conceived in his 1933 pamphlet Now Or Never.
After the creation of Pakistan he returned to Pakistan in April 1948, planning to stay in this country, but he was ordered by the then Prime Minister Liaqat Ali Khan to leave the country. His belongings were confiscated, and he left empty-handed for England in October 1948.
He died on 3 February 1951 and was buried on 20 February at Newmarket Road Cemetery, Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, UK. As there was no one to take responsibility for his burial, Emmanuel College's Master, who had been Rahmat Ali's Tutor, himself arranged the burial in Cambridge on 20 February 1951.
External links
- http://www.chaudhryrahmatali.com/now%20or%20never/index.htm "Now or Never; Are We to Live or Perish Forever?"
- http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Primary-Resources/Detail/?ots591=69F57A17-24D2-527C-4F3B-B63B07201CA1&lng=en&id=106451