Bacha Khan: an epitome of peace.

Byline: Akhtar Ali Syed

The death anniversary of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan popularly known as Bacha Khan is being commemorated by his admirers and followers on January 20, 2020. The epoch making personalities like Bacha Khan can be best assessed in terms of their interaction with the times in which they lived.

Epitomising non-violence and peace as a creed, Gautama Buddha and Christ stand out in the annals of history. In the contemporary period Tolstoy left deep impressions on the thoughts of Gandhi, who embraced the ideal of non-violence and passive resistance using it as a weapon against the apartheid in South Africa.

But on this list of preachers of non-violence, in the history of the region Bacha Khan emerged as the tallest. Though born and brought up in a typical Pakhtun family of rural background, Bacha Khan had the vision, courage and firmness not to blindly follow the old trodden path hindering the progress and unity of Pakhtun society.

Therefore, from a beginning, he denounced the norm of 'badal' (revenge) fracturing the society and campaigned against it. His movement focused to purge the society of the vices, including gender discrimination, disregard for education and religious extremism.

The Pakhtuns were battered by colonial rulers as they considered them to be the weakest link in their defence against potential invaders through Afghanistan. His thinking made him realise Bacha Khan that emancipation of the mind and soul lay in freeing the society from the evil.

In a rural setup, in the prime of his youth, he established his first school in Utmanzai, soon to be followed by chain of more in other parts of Pakhtunkhwa. Averse to such activities, British using all means from bribes to intimidation and incarceration, however, they could not break his resolve.

His courage of conviction led him to form Anjuman-i-Islah-i-Afghana, enabling him to continue with the campaign of social reforms. His other crowning achievement was the publication of Pashto journal 'Pakhtun'. The zenith of his struggle came in the form of Khudai Khidmatgar Movement, which helped in imparting political awareness to the people of Pakhtun belt.

Whilst alive and attached to his passion for freedom from the colonial imperialists, Bacha Khan did not lose sense of realism.

He had the vision that the might of imperialism could not be browbeaten with an armed struggle and, therefore, popularised the idea of...