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Muhajir (Pakistan)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Mohammadkidwai (talk | contribs) at 09:08, 12 September 2007 (→Politics). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
See Muhajir page for all Muhajir groups in the world
Muhajirs File:Un musharraf.jpg
Regions with significant populations
Pakistan,Bangladesh,United Kingdom,Saudi Arabia,Australia,United Arab Emirates,United States,Canada
Languages
Urdu
Religion
Islam( a Sunni majority and a Shia minority)
Related ethnic groups
Other Indo-Aryan peoples Punjabis, Memons, Gujaratis, Pashtuns, Sindhis

Muhajir or Mohajir-Urdu (also called Urdu speakers Hindustani in India and Urdu speakers Pakistanis in Pakistan) (Urdu: مہاجر) is a term widely used to describe the Urdu speaking Muslims who migrated to Pakistan after the independence of Pakistan. They can also be identified as the native Urdu speakers of Pakistan.Although the term does not represent any ethnic group in Pakistan but Muslims in India use this term frequently. The term is also seen quite confusing for many people due to the intermarriages that took place between different ethnic groups after the partition in 1947. Therefore it is hard to identify the original Urdu speakers in Pakistan. Pashtuns and Punjabis in Pakistan speak Urdu so much clearly than the other natives in Pakistan that it is hard to distinguish between them and the original Urdu speakers in Pakistan. Also Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and all Pakistanis speak Urdu fluently no matter what ethnic group they represent. However it is also seen important for Pakistanis to speak and understand other provincial languages in Pakistan. Punjabi language is the most influenced language in Pakistan after Urdu.


Origin and meaning

File:Partion1.jpg
Photo of a railway station in Pakistan during the Partition of India. Many people abandoned their fixed assets and left for the country of their choice.

Muhajir is an Arabic word, widely used in the Muslim world that refers to someone who has emigrated from one place to another. Originally, it referred to the early Muslims, companions of Prophet Muhammad, who emigrated with him from Makkah to Medina in the wake of the Hijra, as opposed to the Ansar, or Madinan Muslims of the time. (See Muhajirun.)

Historical background

Muhajirs are the descendent's of Muslims who ruled India and were living as a minority in provinces of India before partition. The Moghals(Muslims) ruled India for 600 years from Delhi.After the death of Aurangzeb, the Punjab and the Frontier provinces were ruled by Sikhs while Marhattas were ruling large parts of central India. The U.P and Hyderabad were ruled by Muslims until the war of independence in 1857. The remains of Awadh (Lucknow empire)and Delhi (present day UP) had a very significant influence on the creation of Pakistan and its culture. The Urdu language was mostly developed in Delhi and UP regions, in addition to Hyderabad Deccan. The famous poet Mir Taqi Mir was born in Lucknow in the early 18th century. The Muslim League was headquartered in Lucknow before partition and it was founded by nawabs of U.P and Hyderabad. Aligarh University which provided roots to Pakistan movement was in Aligarh, U.P. Liaquat Ali Khan and Sir Syed Ahmed Khan were born in Karnal and Delhi. One of the reasons for the creation of the Muslim league was due to people who held heritage of Muslim rule were afraid that their heritage will be destroyed by Hindu majority. Muhajirs take great pride that Urdu was developed mostly by their ancestors. Urdu also reflects unique heritage of Muhajirs as just like urdu they descended from Indians, Afghan, Turks, Mughals and Arabs converts.

Non Muhajirs or Sons of the Soil

This group of people are the second or third generations of those Muslims who migrated from India after the partition in 1947. These people refer themselves as Pakistani first then Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashtun or Baloch instead of Muhajirs, that is due to the reason that they were born in Pakistan. They are also referred as sons of the soil in Pakistan.


Muhajirs in Bangladesh

Main article: Biharis
See also: Stranded Pakistanis

In addition to the above population, an estimated 600,000 Urdu speaking Muhajirs that had origins in Bihar prior to partition. They were unfortunate victims of the Pakistani civil war of 1971 and live in 64 refugee camps throughout Bangladesh.

Culture

Muhajirs are inheritors of the great Muslim cultural heritage of India. Their culture has traits of Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Marwad as well as culture of Bihar, and Andhra Pradesh.

Political ideology

Muhajirs hold opinions ranging from conservative to liberal. Most tend to be secular and support ideals of Western democracy. Most Muhajirs held comfortable vocations in British India.

Language

The Urdu language binds the Muhajir community together. They have been speaking this language as their Mother tongue for several centuries. Urdu has been the medium of the literature, history and journalism of South Asian Muslims during the last 200 years, having replaced Persian which was the lingua franca of the Muslims. Most of the work was complemented by ancestors of present Punjabis and native Urdu speakers in India. Though Urdu is the lingua franca in Pakistan, only about 8% of the population uses it as a mother tongue, but it is still understood and spoken by as much as two-thirds of the population. Urdu still stands as the only language which bridges the communication gap between all Pakistani people, it is well understood all over Pakistan.

After the emergence of Tarraqi-Pasand Tehreek movement, Punjab rose as one of the important centers of the Urdu language and produced many praiseworthy poets and story writers. These include Saadat Manto, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Muhammad Iqbal.

Lifestyle

The urban lifestyle of Pakistan is mostly colored by Muhajirs in the major cities of Pakistan, as they originally immigrated from mostly urban centers of India before the independence of Pakistan. They have literally developed the Pakistani social and cultural values. Most of the Muhajir traditions ranging from Dress, Cuisine and Manners to Marriage and Funeral customs have greatly been influenced by the other ethnic groups of Pakistan, especially the Punjabis and Sindhis.

Cuisine

Muhajirs have one of the most exquisite culinary traditions in South Asia. Many popular foods of South Asia are essentially of Muhajir origin. Urdu speaking Indian Muslims invented hundreds of exquisite recipes, especially under the patronage of Nawabs of U.P and Hyderabad State. When some of them migrated to urban areas of Pakistan, they carried these rich cuisines with them. Some of the most famous dishes are such as "Shami Kebab", "Biryani", "Qorma", "Nihari","Kheer","Haleem","Halwajat", Bahari Kabab", Nargisi Koftay", "Pati wala Paan" and hundreds of other dishes.


Today, many observers have said that the open discrimination against Muhajirs has considerably been reduced, although the quota system is still applied. This was helped by the fact that some of the top Pakistani figures are of muhajir descent, including people of the performing arts and sports. It is also believed that discrimination against muhajirs has reduced or even vanished in some areas as current President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, and the Governor of Sindh are both Muhajirs. In addition to that, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), which was once a Muhajir political party, is running the city district government of the city of Karachi and is publicly allied to the central government in Islamabad. Another reason why discrimination has been reduced, is that many Muhajirs have intermarried with the other ethnic groups of Pakistan.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the Muhajirs only constituted 7% of the Pakistani population but formed a large part of its bureaucracy due its higher educational levels and support provided by federal government. This created resentment in other linguistic and ethnic groups of Pakistan. The Pakistani government tried to create a balance by introducing job quotas in bureaucracy and educational institutions to help other ethnic and linguistic groups to get their fair representation comparable to their share in the Pakistani population. This affirmative action by the government of Pakistan was resented by the Muhajirs who preferred qualification and merit as the only criteria for jobs and admission into universities.

Pashtun Killers Episode

During the 1964 Presidential Elections, clashes broke out between Urdu speakers and Pashtuns and Punjabis in Karachi, as they were in favor of Fatima Jinnah. It is the fact that President General Ayub Khan supported them, with his own family members taking part in it (His son "Gohar Ayub" is reported to personally fired at innocent people during a victory procession at Liaquatabad(informally known as Lalu Khait"). A Shuhuda-i-1964 mosque was erected in memory of the martyrs at Liaquatabad in Karachi.[citation needed]

1972 Language Riots

In 1972, ethnic riots broke out between Muhajirs and native Sindhis in Urban areas of Sindh.Native Sindhis suffered heavily and Mohajirs drove them out of their lands specially from urban areas of Sindh.

Massacre of Aligarh

On December 15, 1986, a group of armed pushtoon/ANP Workers attacked the Aligarh, Orangi and Qasba colonies and adjacent areas of Karachi and killed innocent people, burnt shops and houses.[citation needed] Some buses and shops of innocent Muhajirs and Pushtoons were burnt and a number of them were attacked the next day, in revenge riots.[citation needed] A total of 150 people were killed in the riots. [1]


Muhajirs and the rise of MQM

The MQM party was formed by Altaf Hussain in 1985 which sought to bring political representation to the Muhajir community. The party currently holds a very strong footing in Karachi and urban Sindh ( Hyderabad, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas & Nawabshah ). Now the MQM is making inroads into the Northern Areas including Azad Kashmir, and it is an area where the Awami National Party has been the traditional stronghold. It is also active abroad, most notably in the UK, the US, and Canada where there is a significant diaspora of Pakistani muhajirs.

Muhajir celebrities who were born in India during partition 1947

See main article for complete list: Famous Muhajirs

Politics

Judiciary

Diplomats

Bankers

Industrialists/Entrepreneurs

Religious Scholars

Educationists

Scientists

Sports Celebrities

Actors

Art and literature

Performing art and media

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ taken from cia world fact book figures based upon the 1998 census of pakistan
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