Radio Pakistan Attack: Rare Handwritten Drama Scripts Reduced To Ashes

APP

Peshawar: Unrestrained miscreants burned down the historic Radio Pakistan building in the provincial capital on May 10 in their fervour for destroying both private and public property, depriving millions of listeners of the rare Pashto and Urdu songs of renowned musicians and singers as well as handwritten drama scripts written by famous writers.

The violent mob during their attack on the national broadcaster did not care for the precious national assets, including the music discs containing the famous Pashto and Urdu songs sung by Ghazal maestro Ahmad Khan, Khyal Muhammad, Mashooq Sultan, and RafiqueShinwari which were burnt to ashes, said Radio Pakistan Peshawar Program Manager HabibunNabi.

Similarly, HabibunNabi said that the original handwritten scripts of Pashto and Urdu dramas authored by famous writers Hamaza Khan Shinwari, Dr. Muhammad AzamAzam, YounasQayasi, Arbab Abdul Wakeel, HamayunHuma, SahirAfridi, Begium AR Daud, ZaitoonBannu, and Syed Rasool Rasa were destroyed by the rioters.

The miscreants set fire to the central library, which was on the third story, turning hundreds of rare theatre scripts, book catalogues, and books on various subjects into ash that was now dispersed throughout the building, Nabi added.

According to Habibun, between 1500 and 2000 historical books were burned, along with the literary masterpieces of well-known Sufi poet Rehman Baba and liberation warrior Khushal Khan Khattak.

Program Manager stated that the rare pictures of known broadcasters Abdul Jan Magmoom and Aftab Ahmed, who had read the news of Pakistan’s independence at midnight on August 13 and 14, 1947, in Pashto and Urdu, and Qari Muhammad, who recited the Holy Quran, were also no more.

Similarly, the pictures of Ghazal mestros and drama writers, including Hamaza Khan Shinwari, AjmalKhattak, KhatarGaznvai, Samandar Khan Samandar, QalandarMohmand, Mumtaz Ali Shah, Shahzad Khan Johar, and Abdullah Jan Magmom alias Marchakay, while performing, were also set ablaze,Nabi added.

Following the installation of the first radio transmitter which was a gift from radio inventor Markoni to Sir Shabzada Abdul Qayyum Khan during the latter’s visit to London, Radio Pakistan began broadcasting in 1935 from a chamber in the Civil Secretariat in Peshawar.

In 1942, Radio Pakistan moved to the former Radio Pakistan building on the Khyber Roadwhich is now the Supreme Court Registry. In 1985, it was ultimately moved to the current structure which General ZaiulHaq, the president at the time, officially opened.

Program Manager Tufail Muhammad told that he mob, who had no regard for the culture or humanity, also set fire to historic performance photos of famous Pashto singers Ahmad Khan, Pride of Performance winner Mashooq Sultan, musician/singer RafiqueShinwari, Pride of Performance winner Khayal Muhammad, and Fazl Rabi.

Tufail informed that in addition to plays and books, rare feature movies on national and international concerns, national anthems, religious texts, and books translated from traditional tapping to computers for digitalization, as well as human interest stories, were all gravely harmed.

“After the attack, Radio Pakistan Peshawar’s transmissions were resumed from four transmission lines, including 1260 kHz, 24 hours from FM 101, Soratul Quran, and News-Current Affairs, within a few hours on an emergency basis, and smoothly continued providing quality entertainment, information, and education services,” further stated Tufail Muhammad.

“The guardian of our cultural heritage is Radio Pakistan. Attacking this historic structure amounted to an attack on our country’s history, culture, theatre, and music,” said Ghazal Maestro Khyal Muhammad.

Khyal Muhammad, who has been associated with Radio Pakistan for several decades, stated that the fact that Radio Pakistan Peshawar resumed transmissions so quickly after the attackdemonstrated the staff’s professionalism, hard work and commitment. This sent a clear message to the attackers that the voice of the government broadcaster could not be silenced by acts of terrorism, Khyal added.

Amin Mashall, a newsreader on a private TV channel who has also been associated with Radio Pakistan Peshawar since 2012, mentioned that the attack on Radio Pakistan and the APP office was an attempt to silence the media and deprive the people of information.

Amin asserted that attempts to vandalise and set ablaze the vehicles of Radio Pakistan and APP staff were made in an effort to terrorise journalists and prevent them from carrying out their legitimate jobs.

Mashall lamented the fact that not a single PTI official had even paid a visit to the national broadcaster to show sympathy for its staff after the building of Radio Pakistan was set on fire during the PTI’s worker protests.

Radio Pakistan was the nation’s voice and requested that it be immediately rebuilt in its original form, Newsreader Amin further stated.

Tufail Khan told that the discs containing pre-Partition Pashto and Urdu songs from 1901–1947 were saved, while those having digitalized songs were lost due to computer burning. Similarly, the voice recording discs of the religious scholars, including MaulanaSaeeduddinSherkoi, were also destroyed, he added.

In the meantime, the administration of Radio Pakistan has allowed the general public, students, and youth access to the burned-out Radio Pakistan Peshawar in order to demonstrate the extent of the destruction. This access will be available to the public through Friday.

The whole four-story building was looted and burned down, with piles of black ashes in nearly every room, with the exception of a few studios and basement rooms. Students and members of civil society are visiting the burned-out Radio Pakistan facility to protest the assault.

“The devastation to this historic building was beyond my imagination and highly condemnable, and the culprits involved in it should be given exemplary punishment,” said EhtishamQaiser of Wapda Town, Peshawar.

EhtishamQaiser criticised the burning of the Chaghi Mountains model which had been built to honour the rioters who destroyed Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation’s (PBC) buildings on May 28, 1998, claiming that it revealed their vile mentality.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Engr. Amir Muqam and others in the leadership have recently visited Radio Pakistan’s building and expressed solidarity with its employees. They promised the management of Radio Pakistan their complete cooperation and support.