This relates to Mr Yaqoob Bangash's historically inaccurate article in Express Tribune on the captioned matter.
It is well known that Jinnah's Muslim League included Ismailis, Shias, Sunnis, Ahmadis etc and therefore the question of defining a Muslim did not arise. In fact Jinnah expressly ruled out the idea when he was pressurised on Ahmadi question. To Mr. Jinnah a Muslim was a person who professed to be a Muslim. Similarly Jinnah never declared Muslims outside the League to be Non-Muslim. His claim that Muslim League represented the Muslims was borne out of his desire to negotiate with the Congress at a level of parity. He never suggested people outside the League were non-Muslims. In fact it was Majlis-e-Ahrar and other Congress allies which declared Jinnah to be a Non-Muslim for being too secular, too westernised and soft on Ahmadis. A mere reading of the Munir Report will prove my point. Similarly 11 August is not the only speech that Jinnah gave which gave an inclusive democratic vision. There were many others and these are easily searchable. This one speech mantra is historically inaccurate. Finally Jinnah's actions as Governor General were driven by the fact that on 22 August 1947, the Khan sb ministry enjoyed the support of only 16 members out of a house of 39. His action was completely constitutional.
I do not know what Jinnah's Pakistan is but Jinnah the man was not born on 23 March 1940. He had spent 4 decades in politics most of which was dedicated to civil liberties, equality and religious freedom for all Indians.
Mr. Bangash unfortunately has slandered the memory of the one man whose wise words we need to follow at this critical juncture in our history. What private griefs they harbor, one cannot say, but distorting history is hardly the way to go about it.
Click here for my detailed rebuttal.
