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Babrra Massacre

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14 of August 1948 was celebrated in NWFP with drums and flags by muslim league sponsored crowds. Just 2 days before 14th ,a painful event on 12 August occurred. Jinnah Sahib dismissed the legitimate government of Dr Khan Sahib in 1948. A government of Muslim league leader , kashmiri born, Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan was installed in NWFP now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. .Abdul Qayyum not only dismissed the majority government but arrested Khudai Khidmatgaar leader Bacha Khan who was a social reformer and preacher of non violence, ,a symbol of peace and devoted fully to the service of humanity. Jinnah Sahib was the first head of Government of Pakistan who dismissed the first elected government of a province.On his foot steps many subsequent democratic governments were dismissed by governor generals and then by militaor dictators. He started a trend .

In July 1948 the provincial governor of NWFP promulgated an ordinance which authorized the government of detaining any one indefinitely and confiscating their properties without disclosing any reason to the detainee. The worse thing was that these detainees were even not allowed to challenge their arrests in the courts. The shameful part of this ordinance was that the governor was feeling so guilty of this act that he stated clearly that he is promulgating this ordinance on the special orders of Governor General Qaud-e-Azam MAHMAD ALI Jannah. Hundreds of nationalists were arrested, tortured and their properties were confiscated under this ordinance.Therefore against this and to protest against the arrests of Bacha Khan, Dr Khan Saib, Qazi Attah-ullah, Arbab Abdul Ghafoor Khan and other notables, it was decided that the Khudai Khidmatgars would in a peaceful procession march from Charsadda to Babra on12th august 1948. The march was announced ahead of time in the major newspapers, all participants were told to congregate at Charsadda empty handed and to peacefully march to the Babra grounds. There seemed to be no objection from the government. It was decided that not even a stick would be allowed in the procession. As soon as crowd of many thousands of peaceful and well disciplined Khudai Khidmatgaars ,young,old and middle aged reached the Babra grounds ,the ruthless muslim league leader Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan arrived with armed police, militia and the red shirts were surrounded by armed vehicles and tanks. They kept marching so Indiscriminate fire was opened on the peaceful protesters. Women of the village seeing their men razed to the ground put Qurans on their heads and rushed into the foray screaming for the firing to stop, but their pleas fell on deaf ears and were as mercilessly shot and killed. Unarmed women and men were killed regardless of their age or sex.

After 45 minutes when the shooting stopped and the smoke cleared there were by one estimate, about five to six hundred dead and a 1000 to 1200 injured. Some eyewitness put the death toll at 1300. Of the two hundred and fifty bodies that were thrown into the river, No mercy was shown to the injured either and many drowned, many were never recovered. The real number of dead may never be known for what followed was even more inhumane, and many chose not to disclose who in their families had perished.
..History would later remember Abdul Qayyum Khan by name of "Double Barrel Khan" for his unmatched cruelty.

In September 1948, then Chief Minister , Abdul Qayyum Khan gave a statement in the provincial assembly, "I had imposed section 144 at Babra. When the people did not disperse, then firing was opened on them. They were lucky that the police had finished ammunition; otherwise not a single soul would have been left alive". Khan Qayyum said hinting at the four members of the opposition in the provincial assembly. He said; "If they were killed, the government would not care about them.

Badshah Khan, Budget session of Assembly on March 20, 1954 said on the issue,

"Six years ago, I announced on the floor of this House that Pakistan is our country and its solidarity and protection is our duty and that any program that will be submitted by any party for its progress and its reconstruction shall have my fullest cooperation. I repeat those words of mine even today. But still there are some persons who suspect my loyalty. I therefore think that it would be advisable to set up a tribunal to inquire not only into the question of loyalty or treason but also into the general massacre, arson and loot and the dishonoring of women and children and old men at Charsadda and the oppressive treatment meted out to us in jail."

Suharawardy, President of the Awami League, told a large gathering in Dacca on July 1950 that ‘the barbarous massacre of the Red Shirts committed at Charsadda in 1948 surpassed the massacre committed by the British in Jallianwala Bagh in 1919.

RefrencesFrom "Prisms and Prisons: Religion, Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and the Khudai Khidmatgars" by Damon Lynch..The Pathan Unarmed: Opposition and Memory in the Khudai Khidmatgar Movement
by Mukulika Banerjee .......... Political Conspiracies in Pakistan byJamna Das Akhtar.............The "Khudai Khidmatgar" (Servants of God) by abdul karim khan.......Khudai Khidmatgar by Frederic P. Miller, Agnes F. Vandome, John McBrewster

@Sher Malang , @KRAIT, @Gigawatt, @nick_indian, @Pakhtoon, @Arooj Khan, @chauvunist @Armstrong, @Afghanihehe, @Secur, @mafiya, @somebozo, @Safriz, @haviZsultan, @pakdefender, @Abu Zolfiqar, @Luftwaffe, @Spring Onion @DESERT FIGHTER, @Skywalker @Last Hope. @F.O.X @qamar1990
 
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@Monkey D Luffy Reminds me of Jallianwala Bagh Massacre. Its a shame that our own leaders have been responsible for deaths of their own people.

Hope people will discuss the event, Govt.'s actions against its own people rather than mud slinging competition.

We have to learn our history and take lessons not to repeat the mistakes in future, That's how nations evolve, that's how they succeed.
 
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@Monkey D Luffy Reminds me of Jallianwala Bagh Massacre. Its a shame that our own leaders have been responsible for deaths of their own people.

Hope people will discuss the event, Govt.'s actions against its own people rather than mud slinging competition.

We have to learn our history and take lessons not to repeat the mistakes in future, That's how nations evolve, that's how they succeed.

Sadly unlike Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, this chapter of history is not told to students in schools history books.
 
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Sadly unlike Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, this chapter of history is not told to students in schools history books.

Post the web link [preferably credible one] also or moderators will close down the Thread, follow Forum Rules.
 
Post the web link [preferably credible one] also or moderators will close down the Thread, follow Forum Rules.

This article is written and compiled by me.....No one has yet uploaded material about it on internet...I can give you the references of books, uss sey kaam chalay ga?
 
Sadly unlike Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, this chapter of history is not told to students in schools history books.
Well, we do a great disservice to our nation and hide something like this from our current and future generation that will make them not informed about mistakes we did in past. Those who don't learn from history, relive it.

Hope, social media and social activists can help in informing our youth. I think you should provide more links and sources to increase the credibility of this news.

You have PDF as a platform. Just like you informed me, many Pakistani posters and especially the Guest posters will know about it. Having said that, providing trusted sources as references will add more weight and help in fulfilling your objective, i.e., to inform us what went wrong and what we forgotten.

Just give the link of the book you mentioned. I think it will do the work.
 
yup...and move back a few millennia and some pushtoons might have been eaten by dinosaurs...
Thats why i always say that many tribal pukhtoon minds are stuck in the past and can never accept the present as the ground reality...
what you are writing may be true and sad but happened 65 years ago? and most probably ANP propaganda.
But even if its true who you want to get revenge from? Pakistan? That seems to be the point of the article.
Enough hatemongering..Learn to move on and live in the present.
Other than that nice compilation and good article writing skills.
 
This article is written and compiled by me.....No one has yet uploaded material about it on internet...I can give you the references of books, uss sey kaam chalay ga?

Yes, that will be very useful, and thank you for making such efforts.

Quite often leaders of the past are turned into legends, even though they were born humans and died so. I very much wish all such material is brought to light from entire history of South Asia.
 
At this point I''ll not comment until MDL post his sources, books, Articles preferably authentic and most importantly "New Paper cuts".


Found one mention in an article, would search for more later.
The Pathans were restive. In order to check them, the Governor General dismissed the Congress Ministry headed by Dr. Khan Sahib and installed Abdul Qayyum as Chief Minister. George Cunnigham who was an archenemy of the Congress, was nominated the Governor of that province. Dr. Khan Sahib, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and thousands of their followers were put behind the bars. Their ‘Red-Shirts’ organization was disbanded ad several hundred Pathans were massacred near Charsadda. Suharawardy, President of the Awami League, told a large gathering in Dacca on July 1950 that ‘the barbarous massacre of the Red Shirts committed at Charsadda in 1948 surpassed the massacre committed by the British in Jallianwala Bagh in 1919.



“Khan Faragh Bukhari tells us that ‘Abdul Qayyum decided to crush the Red Shirts and the followers of Suharawardy. In 1948, his police fired and machine-gunned a peaceful procession of Red Shirts with such cruelty and barbarity that the people forgot the repression perpetuated by the British authorities. Several hundred persons were killed on that day.’
Political Conspiracies in Pakistan - thenews.com.pk


On August 12, 1948, while Jinnah was at deathbed, the security forces opened fire on a protest rally of Khudai Khidmatgars in Babhara village, resulting in the killing of more than 150 people and injuries to over 400 men and women. Some reports, however, put the death toll at 602 while the number of wounded was stated to be in thousands.
http://www.defence.pk/forums/nation...n-1947-71-response-nadeem-paracha-s-also.html

The Babara Monument and graves of about 600 workers of Khudai Khidmatgar Movement, who were killed in 1948, were also part of the graveyard
http://dawn.com/2012/02/28/dead-have-a-story-to-tell-at-charsadda-cemetery/

Awami National Party (ANP) commemorated the Yaum-e-Babara to pay tributes to the people who were killed in the firing incident at Babara village in Charsadda on August 12, 1948
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-7-126255-Tributes-paid-to-Babara-victims
@Luftwaffe
 
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14 of August 1948 was celebrated in NWFP with drums and flags by muslim league sponsored crowds. Just 2 days before 14th ,a painful event on 12 August occurred. Jinnah Sahib dismissed the legitimate government of Dr Khan Sahib in 1948. A government of Muslim league leader , kashmiri born, Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan was installed in NWFP now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. .Abdul Qayyum not only dismissed the majority government but arrested Khudai Khidmatgaar leader Bacha Khan who was a social reformer and preacher of non violence, ,a symbol of peace and devoted fully to the service of humanity. Jinnah Sahib was the first head of Government of Pakistan who dismissed the first elected government of a province.On his foot steps many subsequent democratic governments were dismissed by governor generals and then by militaor dictators. He started a trend .

In July 1948 the provincial governor of NWFP promulgated an ordinance which authorized the government of detaining any one indefinitely and confiscating their properties without disclosing any reason to the detainee. The worse thing was that these detainees were even not allowed to challenge their arrests in the courts. The shameful part of this ordinance was that the governor was feeling so guilty of this act that he stated clearly that he is promulgating this ordinance on the special orders of Governor General Qaud-e-Azam MAHMAD ALI Jannah. Hundreds of nationalists were arrested, tortured and their properties were confiscated under this ordinance.Therefore against this and to protest against the arrests of Bacha Khan, Dr Khan Saib, Qazi Attah-ullah, Arbab Abdul Ghafoor Khan and other notables, it was decided that the Khudai Khidmatgars would in a peaceful procession march from Charsadda to Babra on12th august 1948. The march was announced ahead of time in the major newspapers, all participants were told to congregate at Charsadda empty handed and to peacefully march to the Babra grounds. There seemed to be no objection from the government. It was decided that not even a stick would be allowed in the procession. As soon as crowd of many thousands of peaceful and well disciplined Khudai Khidmatgaars ,young,old and middle aged reached the Babra grounds ,the ruthless muslim league leader Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan arrived with armed police, militia and the red shirts were surrounded by armed vehicles and tanks. They kept marching so Indiscriminate fire was opened on the peaceful protesters. Women of the village seeing their men razed to the ground put Qurans on their heads and rushed into the foray screaming for the firing to stop, but their pleas fell on deaf ears and were as mercilessly shot and killed. Unarmed women and men were killed regardless of their age or sex.

After 45 minutes when the shooting stopped and the smoke cleared there were by one estimate, about five to six hundred dead and a 1000 to 1200 injured. Some eyewitness put the death toll at 1300. Of the two hundred and fifty bodies that were thrown into the river, No mercy was shown to the injured either and many drowned, many were never recovered. The real number of dead may never be known for what followed was even more inhumane, and many chose not to disclose who in their families had perished.
..History would later remember Abdul Qayyum Khan by name of "Double Barrel Khan" for his unmatched cruelty.

In September 1948, then Chief Minister , Abdul Qayyum Khan gave a statement in the provincial assembly, "I had imposed section 144 at Babra. When the people did not disperse, then firing was opened on them. They were lucky that the police had finished ammunition; otherwise not a single soul would have been left alive". Khan Qayyum said hinting at the four members of the opposition in the provincial assembly. He said; "If they were killed, the government would not care about them.

Badshah Khan, Budget session of Assembly on March 20, 1954 said on the issue,

"Six years ago, I announced on the floor of this House that Pakistan is our country and its solidarity and protection is our duty and that any program that will be submitted by any party for its progress and its reconstruction shall have my fullest cooperation. I repeat those words of mine even today. But still there are some persons who suspect my loyalty. I therefore think that it would be advisable to set up a tribunal to inquire not only into the question of loyalty or treason but also into the general massacre, arson and loot and the dishonoring of women and children and old men at Charsadda and the oppressive treatment meted out to us in jail."

Suharawardy, President of the Awami League, told a large gathering in Dacca on July 1950 that ‘the barbarous massacre of the Red Shirts committed at Charsadda in 1948 surpassed the massacre committed by the British in Jallianwala Bagh in 1919.

RefrencesFrom "Prisms and Prisons: Religion, Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and the Khudai Khidmatgars" by Damon Lynch..The Pathan Unarmed: Opposition and Memory in the Khudai Khidmatgar Movement
by Mukulika Banerjee .......... Political Conspiracies in Pakistan byJamna Das Akhtar.............The "Khudai Khidmatgar" (Servants of God) by abdul karim khan.......Khudai Khidmatgar by Frederic P. Miller, Agnes F. Vandome, John McBrewster

@Sher Malang , @KRAIT, @Gigawatt, @nick_indian, @Pakhtoon, @Arooj Khan, @chauvunist @Armstrong, @Afghanihehe, @Secur, @mafiya, @somebozo, @Safriz, @haviZsultan, @pakdefender, @Abu Zolfiqar, @Luftwaffe, @Spring Onion @DESERT FIGHTER, @Skywalker @Last Hope. @F.O.X @qamar1990



so what do you suggest we do?
what can we do to change what already happened?
please tell us.
 
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