8.
An Eid to remember.
A tribute to
two great friends ,Dr.Ghazi Haqqi (late) and Dr.Agha Ikram Mohyuddin , who is
battling against severe illnesses.
On the day of
Eid ul Azha , I phoned the widow of Dr.Ghazi Haqqi ,herself a cousin,
remembering that on each Eid , he and I would exchange greetings . I felt very
sad on the passing away(September 27 , 2013) of a great friend . The feeling of
sadness was with me for days . But nature is a great healer and with
daily mundane affairs , the feeling ebbed .
On the third
day of Eid , my family and I went to see another great friend , Dr. Agha Ikram
Mohyuddin , who is battling a stroke for the past ten years . His brave and
gracious wife told us that her husband was in and out of a hospital . She told
us that her family was remembering us the other day . I thought there was a
mild rebuke in it . We told her that out of compulsions we were not able to
visit them earlier . On entering Dr.Mohyuddin’s room , I walked towards him and
held his hand . I could see the agony writ on his face . He not could
express any feelings. Illness had reduced him to a vegetable .
1. Dr. Ghazi Haqqi .
Ghazi was
my real aunt’s son . His mother was my father’s sister . My first vivid
recollection of his was at her house in Sheikhpura when my late
mother and I were visiting her during the summer vacations in 1955 . This house
was adjacent to a small church . The house had a large courtyard
where we played cricket with my cousins , my aunt five sons , Musleh Bhai ,
Salah Bhai . Shuja Bhai , Ghazi Bhai (it was in only 2007 during my wife and my
visit to Karachi to participate in another cousin’s funeral that Ghazi told me
that he and I shared the same year of birth) and Abid .In the afternoons , we
played a game called ‘London’. The visit was pure fun .
In 1967 , I
stayed with my aunt in Karachi for five months . Opposite her house, a
Christian family lived who came to Karachi from Goa . Mrs.D’Souza was a widow
and she lived with her only son, Levy, who worked for a foreign airline
as a Pursar . On Christmas , Ghazi and I went to wish them the season’s
28
greetings .
They invited us into the drawing room . The scene was a sight to behold . On a
big table were placed very fancy goodies to eat .
However , one
day when both Ghazi and I were in a mood to play pranks , we crossed to road
and approached a papaya tree to pluck ripe and unripe fruit from the
outside her house .After leaving the tree bare , we returned to our house
.In the evening , she came out . She became wretched seeing her bare tree . She
called both of us . We felt really sorry for her .
Employment
drove us into different directions .He became a doctor . Joined the army before
the 1971 war and left after it was over while I joined the Civil Services . Of
and on we used to communicate with each other .
In June
2003 , my family and I moved into a Government bungalow in I-8/1 , Islamabad .
I was busy in building a new house . One day , he phoned me while staying with
his in laws in Islamabad . I took him home to share pot luck with us . On
entering the house , he left the car and raised his hands to pray . He prayed
for a long time for us and our prosperity . After lunch , we moved to see our
under- construction house . He was very happy . We stayed at the site for two
hours . He met my contractor and each labourer . While leaving the place , he
again raised his hands and prayed .
He made it a
point to attend my younger daughter’s wedding and gave her a very precious gift
. He came for a day and flew back to Karachi . On the birth of my first
grandson , he phoned the private hospital to greet my daughter .
Whenever I
faced a medical problem , the first thing was to phone him . He was always
available to me whether at home , or his clinic and even at the Golf Course .
I say a
silent prayer for him because silent grief is more majestic .
2. Dr. Agha Ikram Mohyiddin .
I don’t
remember how he became my friend . It was in 1971 . Perhaps he came to me in my
official capacity . He lived with his Dutch wife and two young daughters
adjacent to my cousin’s in Satellite Town ,Rawalpindi. My cousin
29
was all
praise for him and his wife . Separated from her husband( he left her for an
English nurse ) , she had to bring up two minor sons as a single mother .
Whenever they were ill , Dr. Ikram would take them to the doctor . When I
met him , I was deeply impressed by his gentle and kind behaviour . He belonged
to that the rare breed of men who behave correctly .
We belonged
to different professions : he a reputed Entomologist who qualified his
doctorate from an established western university and I a common civil servant :
one of a hundred civil servants found in Pakistan .
Gradually ,
we became very close to each other . We began visiting each other and
meeting each other’s families. They were lovers of books and I used to borrow
books from him and particularly her because I longed to visit far off
places .
In June 1987
, I fell ill . Despite my handicap and his official pre-occupations
, he used to visit me regularly . On the occasion of Eid every year , he
would bring me a leg of mutton . Every time he went abroad , he would bring
chocolates and candy for my children .
His wife ,
despite belonging to a different culture , has adopted the Pakistani way of
life . When their daughters were younger , Mrs. Mohyuddin would supervise the
teaching of the Noble Quran by sitting beside the children when the Maulana
came. On another occasion , Saad , my son , soiled his clothes when she was
visiting my wife . The latter was in the kitchen preparing tea .Mrs. Mohyuddin
quietly got up to clean Saad . She dressed him and then went into the kitchen
to tell my wife . We deeply appreciated her gesture .
When I was
serving as a Deputy Secretary in the Cabinet , I drew up a list of
deserving names for the grant of Civil Awards pursuant to the Cabinet
Secretary’s instructions as Cabinet Division’s recommendations .I
considered a singular honour to recommend names over and above names approved
by the Secretaries Committee .Among the names recommended by me were Dr.Ikram
Mohyuddin (Awarded), Dr.(Late) Muhammad Sibtain Bokhari (a fine friend ),
and Mr. Eugene Nasir(Awarded) , a Professor of Gordon College ,
Rawalpindi , who developed the finest herbarium in Asia .Among the artistes
recommended by yours truly were Ms Roohi Bano(Awarded) , Ms Ishrat
30
Hashmi
(Awarded), Ms Arshe Munir(Awarded) . However , I was deeply disappointed for
two reasons
A. Dr.Mohyuddin
was awarded when I was no longer in the Cabinet Division .
B. He was
awarded Tamgha I Imtiaz only . I thought he deserved a Sitara I Imtiaz for the
work he did.
My family’s and my prayers with him , and his family ,
that Allah may Bless him with good health .
Such people bring sunshine and great joy to our lives
Such people bring sunshine and great joy to our lives
Mahfooz ur Rahman
ISLAMABAD
OCTOBER 19 , 2013
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