A doubtful return.

My late father Nazir Ahmed Malik was a worker of the Pakistan Movement. He joined the All-India Muslim League (AIML) in 1935 and did not join any other political party till his demise. In recognition of his struggle, he was awarded the prestigious Tehreek-e-Pakistan Gold Medal in the year 1990. AIML ceased to exist after the partition on August 14, 1947. Muhammad Ali Jinnah the father of the nation tried to give direction to the new party but his efforts were resisted. He severed all his links with the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) that emerged under the leadership of Chaudhry Khaliq-uz-Zaman.

There was an attempt to corner independent-minded stalwarts which resulted in a mass exodus from the founding party. Heavyweights like Hussain Shaheed Suharwardy, and Mian Iftikhar-ud-din left the party. Taking advantage of the divided house the empire decided to strike back. The slide started after the assassination of the first Prime Minister (PM) Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951. In October 1958 when Ayub Khan decided to send the founding fathers home through his draconian Elected Bodies Disqualification Ordinance (EBDO) there was no one left to take on the onslaught. Khan Qayyum Khan, the most popular PML leader of his time, decided to retire from politics and went back to his legal practice in Peshawar. I went with my father to see him after his release from the Lahore Fort. He was badly shaken and in no mood to offer resistance. My old man reminded him of all his previous struggles and jail terms in hopes of raising his morale to fight back. I remember his words, 'There is a world of difference between Gora and Desi Jails Malik Sahib.' PML was tamed by the first usurper. He even succeeded in launching the first 'Kings Party' under the banner of the Pakistan Muslim League (Convention). Suharwardy challenged his disqualification. He defended himself in the military tribunal presided over by a Lt. Col. Before opening his arguments he recorded his strong reservations saying, 'A country where a Lt. Col. presides over the trial of an Ex-PM cannot remain intact.' He was exonerated of all the charges but had to leave the country. He died mysteriously while in self-exile in Beirut. His words came true when Jinnah's Pakistan was dismembered in December...