Meraj Muhammad Khan
| Meraj Muhammad Khan | |
|---|---|
| Founding Member and General Secretary Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf[1] | |
|
In office 1998–2003 | |
| Founder and Chairman Qaumi Mahaz-i-Azadi (Party)[2] | |
|
In office 1977 – Unknown | |
| Minister of Labour and Manpower | |
|
In office 20 December 1971 – 13 August 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Air Marshal Nur Khan |
| Succeeded by | Abdul Qayyum Khan |
| Vice-President of the Pakistan Peoples Party | |
|
In office 30 November 1967 – 22 October 1974 | |
| Preceded by | Office Established |
| Succeeded by | Dr. Mubashir Hassan |
| Founding Member of the Pakistan Peoples Party | |
|
In office 30 November 1967 – 1977 | |
| President of National Students Federation | |
|
In office 4 July 1963 – 30 November 1967 | |
| Preceded by | Johar Hassan |
| Succeeded by | Rasheed Hassan Khan |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
20 October 1938 Farrukhabad, Uttar Pradesh, British Raj |
| Died |
21 July 2016 (aged 77) Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan |
| Citizenship | Pakistan |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Political party | Pakistan Peoples Party |
| Other political affiliations | Pakistan terekh-e-Insaaf, PTI |
| Alma mater |
Karachi University DJ Science College |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Profession | Philosopher |
| Cabinet | Government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto |
| Award(s) | Habib Jalib Award |
Meraj Muhammad Khan (Urdu: معراج محمد خان; 20 October 1938 – 21 July 2016),[3] was a Pakistani socialist politician and philosopher. He played a key role in founding of Pakistan's three political parties. He was noted as one of the key philosopher and founding personality of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and as a major contributor to the initial Left of Centre/Social Democratic so-called the Basic Programme of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He was also founder of Qaumi Mahaz-i-Azadi which he founded after leaving PPP in 1977.
In addition, he is well known and influential communist figure in the country, and known for his political struggle and advocacy against anti-capitalist convergence and the support of the social democracy.[4]
Biography
Meraj Muhammad Khan was born on 20 October 1938 in Farrukhabad, Uttar Pradesh, British Indian Empire to an educated family of Pashtun origin. He is originally from Maidan, Tirah from the Zakka Khel subtribe of the Afridis.[5] In his early times, his family moved to Quetta.[5] He was the youngest of four sons and his father, Hakeem Molvi Taj Muhammad Khan, was a homoeopath who practised the methods of Greek medicine in Quetta, Balochistan.[5]
After graduating from local high school in 1956, Khan moved to Karachi where he attended DJ Science College and later pursued his higher education at Karachi University in 1957.[5] He earned a BA in philosophy and humanities in 1960, and an MA in philosophy in 1962.[5]
Communism and PPP activism
He came to public prominence in 1960s while studying at Karachi University. During this time, there was a debating competition in which students from all the colleges of Karachi were participating.[6] At this competition, some activists of the Communist Party were sitting in the audience, who asked him to join the Communist Party.[6]
He became an active member of the National Students Federation, eventually becoming NSF's president in 1963. Khan turned the NSF into a militant student political organisation that campaigned for the rights of students.[6] In 1967, he left the NSF after secretly learning of a socialist convention being held in Lahore, Punjab.[6]
He was among those who founded the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and fully endorsed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto for the PPP's chairmanship.[6] Through the PPP, he went into mainstream politics and successfully contested in the 1970 general elections on a PPP platform from the Karachi constituency.[6]
Labour ministry (1971–1973)
In December 1971, Khan was appointed Minister for Manpower and directed the Ministry of Labour (MoL) in Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's government.[6] In 1972, his tenure saw a major labour strike in Karachi; though it was peacefully resolved by Meraj's intervention.[7] It was later reported in newspapers and television that the labour strike was actually a competition between two PPP ministers, Meraj and Law Minister Abdul Hafiz Pirzada for the control of the labour.[7]
Meraj's radical leftist group was in direct competition against Law Minister Pirzada's Pro-Peking group. However, Meraj's denied all accusations on the television.[7]
In 1973, Mairaj fell out with the Bhutto government when Bhutto started to compromise on his so-called Socialist agenda and the regime resorted to repressive measures.[6] As time passee, his differences with Prime Minister Bhutto grew and he left the PPP to reorganise the NSF. However, Miraj fell into political isolation, never to regain his political credibility and popularity.[6]
Commenting on PPP, Meraj later revealed that "the radical (leftist) rhetoric was more than a mask designed to win and retain power."[8] He once said: "Ali Bhutto was a great man ... but he could be cruel."[9]
Political activism (1980s-until his death)
After leaving the PPP, he became a prominent democratic activist and leftist leader of the Movement for Restoration of Democracy (MRD) opposing the military government of President General Zia-ul-Haq.[10]
In 1998, he joined the center-left/centrist Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) headed by Imran Khan, but resigned from the party in 2003, citing differences with Khan.[10] He then joined the Mazdoor Kisan Party, which later merged with the Communist Party of Pakistan to form the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party.[10] He died in Karachi on 21 July 2016.[1]
References
- 1 2 "Senior politician Meraj Muhammad Khan passes away". thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
- ↑ "The left in Pakistan: a brief history - Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal". links.org.au. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ↑ "Time running out to stem crises". The Nation (Pakistan). 21 October 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
- ↑ Jones, edited by Mike O'Donnell, Bryn (2010). Resurgence of the Sixties: Radicalism Revisited. London: Anthem. ISBN 978-1-84331-895-8.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Naimat Khan (30 June 2013). "'His Excellency' Meraj Muhammad Khan". Frontier Post. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Khan, Lal (22 May 2009). "Pakistan's Other Story: 6. Witness to Revolution – Veterans of the 1968–69 upheaval". Marxist News, Pakistan. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- 1 2 3 Khan, Naveeda (2012). Beyond Crisis: Re-evaluating Pakistan. Abingdon [u.k]: Routledge. ISBN 1136517588.
- ↑ Ali, Tariq (2008). The Duel: Pakistan on the Flight Path of American Power. New York [u.s.]: Scribner. ISBN 1471105881.
- ↑ Allam, Zalan. "Understanding Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto,". Sixth hour. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- 1 2 3 Pakistan Herald. "Details of Meraj Muhammad Khan". Pakistan Herald. Pakistan Herald. Retrieved 3 November 2013.