FAQIR OF IPI
Faqir of Ipi (Mirza Ali Khan--his real name) was born in 1897 in a hamlet called Kurta (Maddi Khel) at a distance of about one kilometer from Khajuri Camp on the Bannu-Miranshah Road. He belonged to the famous Turi Khel clan of the Wazir tribe of
North Waziristan Agency of Turi Khel: he came from Bangal Khel
subsection of Maddi Khel section. He was a descendant of Musa Darwesh,
commonly known as Musa Nikeh (Musa, the grandfather).
His father Sheikh Arsala Khan and grandfather Mohammad Ayaz Khan were
highly religious men of the area. It was but natural that young Mirza
Ali Khan bore a conspicuous religious stamp on his personality. Like
other tribal children, Mirza Ali Khan got his early education in Arabic, Persian, Pushto and Urdu from his father and the village Mullah. He was twelve when his father died leaving a family of seven, consisting of his mother, three
younger brothers and three sisters. After the death of the village
Mullah, he moved to the nearby Daur country Hasso Khel and Haidar Khel-
in pursuit of Knowledge. There Maulvi Manay Jan Daur and Maulvi Alam
Khan IPI Daur Taught him.
Getting basic knowledge in teb (Homeopathy) and theology, Mirza Ali Khan went to Nurar Village in Bannu Tehsil, where he spent some years with Maulvi Gul Kheodad, a prominent leader of the Khilafat Movement. As
his thirst for knowledge could not be quenched in those traditional
local centers of learning, he continued his search for a true teacher
and a guide. He went to various Khanqahs and madrassahs of contemporary
saints and scholars of Peshawar, Kohat, Khost and Jalabad. It was at
Jalabad that he became a Mureed of Sayed Hassan, commonly known as Naqib Sahib of Jalabad, a prominent Sufi and Gadi Nashin of the Qadariyya
order in Afghanistan. Impressed by the piety and obedience of Mirza Ali
Khan, Naqib Sahib bestowed upon him his robe of lieutenancy. Thus in
the company of Naqib Sahib, Mirza Ali Khan reconstructed his religious
and temporal thoughts and decided to go back to his native village.
In Afghanistan, Mirza Ali khan had the opportunity of meeting Qari Hayat-ud-Din alias Sherdad Bannuchi who had migrated to Afghanistan along with his family during the Hijrat Movement of 1920. Upon the requests of his friends, Mirza Ali Khan entered the wedlock with his daughter.
He left Afghanistan along with his wife and returned to his native
hamlet in Waziristan. On his arrival, some Daurs of village Ipi invited
him to their village for permanent settlement. Mirza Ali Khan accepted the invitation and shifted with his family to Ipi.
Inhabitants of Ipi gifted him a house and a mosque. He busied himself
in imparting religious education and spiritual guidance to poor
illiterate people. Hence, the mosque became a centre of knowledge in
theology and blessing in spiritualism in Waziristan and the surrounding
areas. It was after his arrival from Afghanistan that Mirza Ali Khan
performed Hajj.
Political Life
Waziristan
was a chronic problem for the British administration in the Frontier
province. It was but natural that after coming to Waziristan, Mirza Ali
Khan could not remain unsusceptible and indifferent to politics at the
provincial as well as all India level. His own approach to the Indian
political cauldron was two pronged. In that he seemed bogged down in
political duality, if not in character dichotomy, as his detractors
would make us believe.
He could not help siding with the swarajist elements in the province.
Most of them happened to be in the Congress camp, e.g., the Khudai
Khidmatgars and the Jamiat-ul-Ulama. This extremist anti-British group,
which was more in line with the Congress rather than with the Muslim
League, easily gained the support of Mirza Ali Khan. The former gave him
all out backing as long as he could mobilise his followers against the
British Forces in Waziristan. This was one anti-British (Raj) and that
of a freedom fighter who believed most in military power than in
political solutions.
Another aspect of Mirza Ali Khan’s political life was that even when he supported Congress for its struggles for freedom, he seemed to the Congressites like a rank communalist.
In all the religious and political brawls between Hindus and Muslims,
he sided with his co-religious group for which he was accused of
preaching communalism. In communal incidents like that of the Shaheed
Ganj Mosque in Lahore, Nationalist leaders of the Frontier province like Abdul
Ghaffar Khan adopted non-communalist stance and advocated Hindu-Muslim
unity, whereas Mirza Ali Khan came out openly against what seemed to him
as the Hindus hate for Muslims.
His contemporary critics, both Hindus and Muslims, could not understand the two conflicting stances of Mirza Ali Khan. While he supported the Congress movement despite his animosity towards Hindus in their communal tussle with Muslims,
he stood firmly beside his co-religionists in defence of the Muslim
rights and honour although he was not in favour of the Muslim League.
To
ignite communal frenzy, and as bad luck would always have it in such
circumstances, an incident took place that worsened further the communal
tension between hindus and Muslims in the province. It engulfed the
entire Bannu District and drew attention of Muslims and Hindus all over
India. It involved the ruling Congress Party led by Doctor Khan Sahib
and the opposition Muslim League led by Sardar Aurangzeb khan so much
that the latter used the incident as a propaganda tool against the
former in the Frontier Province.
The case of Islam Bibi
In March 1936, however, came the turning point in the Faqir's career. The incident was the trial case of the so-called 'Islam Bibi',the crisis was triggered by the conversion and marriage of a 15-year-old Hindu girl Ram Kori, named and known as Islam Bibi, to a Pashtun school teacher Syed Amir Noor Ali Shah of Bannu.
A minor girl still, the British Resident of Waziristan and the Brigade
Commander Bannu applied strong political pressure on the Torikhel and
Madda Khel Waziris for the release of the girl. The next morning two
companies of Tochi Scouts surrounded the village holding Islam Bibi, and
a flight of fully armed RAF Audaxes circled overhead in a show of
force. The tribal elders acceded to the Political Agent's plea to allow
Islam Bibi to declare her decision in front of a Jirga comprising both
sides. Before such a Jirga could be arranged, however, the Deputy
Commissioner of Bannu, with the concurrence of the NWFP Government,
somehow managed to whisk Islam Bibi and her parents away into the
interior of the Punjab.
The
school teacher was accused of abduction and arrested. The case reached
the court in Bannu city 'amid a blaze of publicity.' The trial
magistrate found no evidence to suggest that Islam Bibi left her home
under compulsion. Noor Ali Shah's claim to the girl's custody was
dismissed as he could not prove 'legal marriage'. He received two years
imprisonment for abduction. This verdict proved the trigger for the
Faqir. "In
1937, the tribesmen rose in rebellion against the British forces, in
response to a call for jihad by the Faqir of Ipi, a tribal leader who
exercised both religious and temporal powers. The tribal insurrection
started after the British forces engineered the escape of a Hindu girl
kidnapped by a young Pashtun and taken to Waziristan. The
girl had reportedly converted to Islam and taken the name of Islam Bibi
before marrying the boy. The British authorities somehow managed to
whisk away the girl and the incident was taken as an unforgivable insult
to the tribal elders. Fiercely hostile to British rule, the Faqir of Ipi whose real name was Mirza Ali Khan, made an impassioned call for holy war."
Pukhtoonistan and Faqir of Ipi
The
emergence of Pakistan as an independent state revived the old question
of the Durand Line which had not been clearly demarcated in certain
areas. In July 1947, the
Kabul Government sent a note to London, demanded that “the Pukhtoons and
Baluchis should be given the choice to opt either for indepence or for a
union with Afghanistan.”
Some
of the Frontier nationalist leaders like Abdul Ghaffar Khan and his
partymen who had fought against the Britishers as foreign intruders,
showed no desire to become a part of the new state of Pakistan. On June
21,1947, Abdul Ghaffar Khan convened a party meeting at Bannu and the
following resolution, called the Bannu resolution, was passed.
“A
joint meeting of the Frontier Jirga (Frontier provincial committee),
members of the Assembly, Commanders of the Khudai Khidmatgars and the
Zalme Pukhtoon was held on the 21st of June, 1947 at Bunnu with Khan
Amir Mohammad Khan in the chair. This joint session unanimously decided
that here in this country (NWFP) an independent Government of all the
Pukhtoons shall be established, the constitution of which will be based
on Islamic principles of democracy, equality and social justice. This
session appealed to all pakhdtoons to unite together on one platform to
achieve this noble aim and not to bow before the power of anybody except
that of the Pukhtoon.”
At
a big public meeting the following day, Abdul Ghaffar Khan declared
that the Frontier Congress would not take part in the proposed
Referendum.
On 12thMay, 1948, the Faqir of Ipi published and issued an anti Pakistan poster from his headquarters in Gurwek. In that poster, he claimed that “Pakistan was a creation of the British and Mohammad Ali Jinnah was a British agent.” He further declared that he would start an operation against the Government of Pakistan.
On
15th June, Abdul Ghaffar khan was arrested near Bahader Khel when he
was on his way to the southern districts. Charges of sedition and the
planning to declare an independent Pukhtoonistan state in cooperation
with the Faqir of Ipi were leveled against him. The next day he was put
on a summary trial under section 40 of the Frontier crimes Regulations
by the Deputy commissioner Kohat. On refusing to furnish security for
good behaviour, he was sentenced to three years of rigorous
imprisonment.
The
Frontier government issued a long press communiqué charging that the
Faqir of Ipi with a small group of hostile men, on June 15, (1948)
started attacking a few posts in North Waziristan. The coincidence of
this hostile action by the Faqir of Ipi with the appearance of Abdul
Ghaffar Khan at Bannu, ostensibly on a propaganda tour, suggested a
clear and close liaison between the two in their endeavour to foment
unrest in the North West Frontier. Faridullah Shah, who had served as
political Agent in North Waziristan Agency, strongly denied that there
ever was any link between the two.
Whether
or not Abdul Ghaffar Khan was guilty, remains open to research. The
Faqir of Ipi, however, had already identified himself actively with the
Afghan sponsored “Pukhtoonistan Movement”, and the Pakistan Government
appeared to had some reason to believe that coordinated Indian and
Afghan attacks were planned on the respective borders in the spring of
1948.
I.I.
Chandrigar, the then Ambassador of Pakistan at Kabul, reported in May
1949, that “for a long time, the Faqir of Ipi had been aspiring to
become the King of Waziristan, He, therefore, did not view with favour
the establishment of Pakistan, as the establishment of this great Muslim
State was bound to frustrate his ambitions. Afghan Government saw in
him an ally, who would be useful in creating trouble for Pakistan and
continued to help him with money, food-grains…arms and ammunitions. With
the deterioration of relations between India and Pakistan over the
Kashmir issue, the Indian Embassy appeared on the scene and was believed
to have helped the Faqir of Ipi with money. In the earlier part of the
year, there was a four-pronged offensive strategy against Pakistan from
the Afghan Government, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan his party in the North
West Frontier Province, the Faqir of Ipi and the Government of India
acting as instigators and suppliers of money through the Indian Embassy
in Kabul.
On August 12, 1949 a number of Afridi tribesmen and their Sarishta party met at Tirah Bagh, the center of their homeland. The flag of “Independent Pukhtoonistan” approved by the “Pukhtoonistan National Assembly”(Tirah
branch) published addressed to all the people of Pukhtoonistan, to the
entire Muslim world and particularly to Afghanistan, to all Pukhtoons
living abroad and to the United Nations Organization. Their proclamation
ran as:
“We
the Tira branch of the National Assembly of Pukhtoonistan, having
formed the first nucleus of a free and democratic Muslim Government
amidst the lofty mountains of Tirah, hereby express the hope that with
the help of Almighty Allah and freedom loving Pukhtoons, this young
plant will in a short time grow into a sturdy and fruitful tree, which
will not only benefit Pukhtoonistan (from Chitral to Baluchistan and
from Khyber and Bolan to the banks of Indus )but will also fulfill its
obligation towards the progress and peace of the world.”
Over
a broadcast from Radio Kabul, this proclamation was greeted with great
enthusiasm in Afghanistan when the Government announced that it was
extending immediate recognition and support. In the same month, a jirga
of the different tribes of Wazirstan visited Kabul with the consent of
the Faqir of Ipi. The jirga was assured by the Afghan authorities of all
sorts of help.
In
order to propagate the idea of Pukhtoonistan, the Faqir of Ipi
published pushto pamphlets and a Pushto newspaper, “THE GHAZI” from
Gurwek. Maulana Mohammad Waris Shah, Mulana Habib-ur-Rehman, Mulana Din
Mohammad, Babu Kaji Khan, and Mohammad Zahir shah were on the editorial
board of the paper. Following is a translation of the “GHAZI” dated 9th
December, 1949:
“From
August 15, 1947, when the British appointed Mr. Jinnah as the Governor –
General of Pakistan, the Pir of Manki, Pir of Zakori, Doctor Khan
Sahib, Abdul Ghaffar Khan and other prominent figures amongst Pukhtoons
raised their voice for the introduction of Shariat and freedom for
Pukhtoonistan. But against these demands, intending to bring Pukhtoons
under slavery with the help of gold and bayonets, the so-called Islamic
Government began to promote the religion of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiyani,
and continued the enforcement of the British supremacy…. Pukhtoons are
like one body and cannot be divided into two. Generosity and sense of
honour is the heritage of Pukhtoons.
They
also have the sharpest sword in their possession. Despite 14 years of
continued bombardment by the Britishers the people of Waziristan did not
accept slavery, being courageous, like the Faqir of Ipi who did not
flee from the battlefield during the past 14 years. However two are the
major defects (I) the introduction of man-made laws, and (II)
encroachment upon the legal rights of Pukhtoons. We
will either achieve freedom or will bring distruction for the whole of
the country. Long live Pukhtoonistan, Long live Afghanistan.”
Meetings
of various tribes of Waziristan, Khattaks, Marwats, Bhittanis, Turis
and Bannuchis were held on January11, 12 and 15,1950 for the election of
Pukhtoonistan National Assembly (Waziristan Branch) and its President. The Assembly thus elected unanimously decided to have the Faqir of Ipi as its first president.
In that capacity the Faqir demanded the withdrawal of Pakistani forces
from the Pukhtoon territories to free the land of seven million
Pukhtoons, otherwise they will be themselves responsible for its
consequences. He also appealed to the United Nations for recognition of
Pukhtoonistan and requested the Afghan authorities for its publicity.
Under
his presidentship there existed, as it was claimed, departments with
several functions of the “state.” His departmental heads lived with him
in Gurwek. The Faqir claimed control over an area of 5,0 00 square miles
centering on Gurwek, but actually manage to assert his authority in
considerably less than 500 square miles There is an evidence”, says
Mazhar Ali Shah, “that the Faqir of Ipi used to receive one crore and
thirty six lacs Afghanis as pay for Ahmadzai, Utmanzai, Mahsuds and
Bhittanis followers and ten lacs annually for his own use from the
Afghan Government.” He further says that “colonel Mohammad Hussain
Khostwal and Mohammad Qarar Khostwal were Afghan agents who work as
intermediaries for all money transactions of the Faqir with the Afghan
Government. Zar Khan Tori Khel Haibati and Agha Jan Pipali Kabul Khel were his special messengers for a long time who used to shuttle between…. Gurwek and Kabul.”
In
August 1951, a special delegation consisting of Malik Abdullah Khan
Mada Khel, Malik Atta Mohammad Khan, Malik Behram, Malik Jani and Malik
Badshah with a special message from the Faqir of Ipi visited Kabul and
met with Muhammad Zahir Shah, the then King of Afghanistan, the late
Sardar Daud khan and the ambassadors of India and Iran.
In
1954, Christopher Rand, a correspondent of the New York was able to
interview the Faqir of Ipi at Gurwek. Shortly afterwads, two Soviet
officials, Messre Alexovitch and Demrovitch, members of a Soviet
technical mission at Kabul, called upon the Faqir of Ipi at his Gurwek
headquarters.
Even in June 1941, the German and Italian agents had visited Gurwek and
paid him 16, 000 Afghanis to carry out pro-Axis propaganda in the
Frontier areas to creat trouble for the British.During World War II till
as late as 1942, extensive
efforts were made by Germany and Italy to ally with the Faqir and
organise a full scale tribal uprising against the British. Support
included money, weaponry and with propaganda. The assistance was limited
because of the obvious difficulties in supply and communication. These
efforts were followed up primarily by the Italians as the Germans
believed a British defeat was inevitable at that stage. However with the advent of the USSR in the war, pressure was put on Afghanistan to halt German and Italian infiltration of the tribal areas.
In
1952-53, the flow of money to Gurwek from Afghan Government was greatly
reduced due to some misunderstanding between the Faqir and the
Pukhtoonistan leaders based in Kabul. However, through Faiz Mohammad, the Afghan Wali (Governor) of the Southern province, the subsidies were restored. The Faqir’s position was weakened when his close associate and principal lieutenant Khalifa Mehr Dil Khattak surrendered to Pakistani officials in Bannu in November 1954, bringing seventy followers with him.
On March 27, 1955 the Pakistani Government promulgated the ordinance creating “One Unit” in
West Pakistan. The Afghan Government considered it as a move to destroy
the identity of the Eastern Pukhtoons. The reaction culminated in an
inflammatory speech by Afghan Prime Minister, Sardar Daud Khan, on March
28. The next day, Afghan mobs sacked Pakistani diplomatic mission
building at Jalalabad and Kandahar and the Pak Embassy at Kabul. A
retaliatory attack was made few days later on the Afghan Consulate at
Peshawar. Pakistan clamped a blockade on Afghan Imports and exports. A
Mahsud jirga in South Waziristan during a meeting of Maliks, claiming to
represent 10,000 North Waziristan tribesmen ostentatiously asked
permission to march on Kabul to avenge the national honour. During the
time between 1956 and 1958, the tension was eased as Iskandar Mirza, the
then President of Pakistan, exchanged state visits with Mohammad Zahir
Shah.
It
was reported in October, 1958 that the Faqir of Ipi who was the pivot
of the so-called pukhtoonistan Movement has recently turned absolutely
indifferent. If not openly hostile to Afghanistan, the reason being that
the Afghans realized the futility of their monetary aid to him and
stopped pating the tribes through him. He has discarded the so-called
Pukhtoonistan Flag and has hoisted instead his own flag which is called “Faqiri Flag.” Maulvi
Amir Saeed alias Jangi Mullah, and Maulvi Akbar Zaman Bannuchi, the
close associates of the Faqir, distributed in the Hamzoni Dawar area the
copies of newspaper “ THE AZAD PUKHTOON”
published at Gurwek. The paper, inter alia, published the details of
the Faqir’s tour to Wazirstan. “Amir-ul-Muslimeen (the Faqir) along with
his lieutenants is on his tour to Waziristan. Presently his tour has
good effects on the Bhittanis tribes as well as on other tribes. A
number of old disputes were settled among the Wazirs, Mehsuds and
Bhittanis. A large number of weapons and cash was collected for the
Faqir’s exchequer in the Mehsud territory.” Though during his tour the
Faqir remained silent about Pakistan, he never turned pro-Pakistani.
After his tour to Waziristan, he hid himself in a cliffside cave at
Gurwek and on 16th April, 1960, he died of asthma. His funeral prayer was attended by thousands of people and his funeral prayer was led by Maulvi Mir Rehman.
