We need Maulana Azad’s values more than ever
Other than spearheading the education sector, he must also be remembered for his secular political credentials
In 2008, November 11 was designated as the National Education Day to commemorate the birthday of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, independent India’s first education minister. But today everyone seems to have forgotten not just the day, but also Azad, one of India’s tallest leaders. Even the University Grants Commission (UGC), which was established under his tenure, does hardly anything noteworthy to remind the nation of Azad’s contribution to the education sector. Other than the UGC, the first IIT, Indian Institute of Science and the School of Planning and Architecture were set up when he was the education minister (1947 to 1958). He was also the architect of the sahitya, sangeet-natak and lalit lala akademis and Indian Council for Cultural Relations and the science councils.
Other than spearheading India’s education sector, Azad must also be remembered for his political thoughts that stressed on Hindu-Muslim unity. In 1923 as the youngest Congress president, Azad spoke at the Indian National Congress’ special session in Delhi. “Today if a farishta were to descend from heaven and declare from the heights of the Qutab Minar that India would get Swaraj within 24 hours, provided she relinquishes Hindu-Muslim unity, I will relinquish Swaraj rather than give up Hindu-Muslim unity. Delay in the attainment of Swaraj will be a loss for India, but if our unity is lost it will be a loss for the entire mankind,” he said. The nation has also forgotten that Azad gave the first call for Swaraj in 1912 when he launched Al Hilal from Calcutta. In 1988, however, the nation celebrated his birth centenary with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. It recalled his literary masterpieces, which includes the magnum opus Tarjumanul Quran, the best translation, and explication of Koran.
The speeches he made before Independence and in Parliament are still the best examples of statesmanship and elegant prose. He made incisive points without compromising his or his opponent’s dignity. He, however, never wrote or allowed anyone to write his biography. But he did write letters from Ahmednagar prison where he was incarcerated with Jawaharlal Nehru and other leaders.
The English media has forgotten him; only the Urdu media remembers him: Public gatherings were held in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Delhi this year but unfortunately only in Muslim pockets. One news photo in an Urdu paper showed two Muslim leaders (one each from the Congress and the BJP) offering flowers at his grave. In the last few months, there have been several attacks on Muslims by cow vigilantes. If there is a time we need Azad’s secular political credentials, it is now. We sometimes express remorse when many of our desires do not get fulfilled. We can avoid such crude experiences by starting our work confidently. As we know, work done half-heartedly is presumed to be the indication of achieving nothing.
For that we ought to have a very sharp and clear-cut conception of what we have to do and how we will go about achieving it. Then, we can reach our goals. Here we can very well relate to the actions of Robber Ratnakar