The Day Quaid Led a Procession to Our House
The Day Quaid Led A Procession To Our House
MAJYD AZIZ
Bantva is a small town in Kathiawar, India, the birthplace of many a prominent Memon personality. This town has produced the largest number of millionaires and eminent persons. Sattar Edhi, the social worker par excellence, Abdul Razzak Dawood, a former Federal Commerce & Industries Minister, Kassim Parekh, past Governor of State Bank of Pakistan, Haji Hanif Tayyab, a former Federal Labor Minister, Ahmed Dawood, the epitome of Pakistany entrepreneurs, Ilyas Shakir, a noted journalist and Editor of Quomi Akhbar, Kassam Dada, the most well-known Pakistany Rotarian, Arif Habib, alongwith five other ex-Chairmen of Karachi Stock Exchange, and so many others were all born in Bantva.
January 24, 1940 was a red-letter day in the history of this town. It was on that day that Bantva's Muslim denizens festooned the place with buntings and flags to welcome Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah who was making his first ever trip to this village. 25 gateways were set up all over the place, and on his arrival, he was greeted with a 21-gun salute. The grand old man of Bantva and the paterfamilias of the Dada family, Seth Hussein Kassam Dada, very graciously offered his bungalow at his farm for the comfort and convenience of the undisputed leader of the Indian Muslims.
The Memon community organized a sumptuous lunch where the high and mighty of the Bantva Memons plus representatives of various princely states were invited. A public meeting was arranged in the evening at the Madrasa-e-Islamia where the Quaid addressed the gathering in Urdu. He made a clarion call for donations to the "Press Fund" so that an independent newspaper for the Muslims could be published. The next day witnessed an interesting situation that was very much appreciated by the Quaid. The Memon community was in full swing with each person coming up on the dais and announcing his own contribution to the fund. Jinnah was overwhelmed at this show of
MAJYD AZIZ
Bantva is a small town in Kathiawar, India, the birthplace of many a prominent Memon personality. This town has produced the largest number of millionaires and eminent persons. Sattar Edhi, the social worker par excellence, Abdul Razzak Dawood, a former Federal Commerce & Industries Minister, Kassim Parekh, past Governor of State Bank of Pakistan, Haji Hanif Tayyab, a former Federal Labor Minister, Ahmed Dawood, the epitome of Pakistany entrepreneurs, Ilyas Shakir, a noted journalist and Editor of Quomi Akhbar, Kassam Dada, the most well-known Pakistany Rotarian, Arif Habib, alongwith five other ex-Chairmen of Karachi Stock Exchange, and so many others were all born in Bantva.
January 24, 1940 was a red-letter day in the history of this town. It was on that day that Bantva's Muslim denizens festooned the place with buntings and flags to welcome Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah who was making his first ever trip to this village. 25 gateways were set up all over the place, and on his arrival, he was greeted with a 21-gun salute. The grand old man of Bantva and the paterfamilias of the Dada family, Seth Hussein Kassam Dada, very graciously offered his bungalow at his farm for the comfort and convenience of the undisputed leader of the Indian Muslims.
The Memon community organized a sumptuous lunch where the high and mighty of the Bantva Memons plus representatives of various princely states were invited. A public meeting was arranged in the evening at the Madrasa-e-Islamia where the Quaid addressed the gathering in Urdu. He made a clarion call for donations to the "Press Fund" so that an independent newspaper for the Muslims could be published. The next day witnessed an interesting situation that was very much appreciated by the Quaid. The Memon community was in full swing with each person coming up on the dais and announcing his own contribution to the fund. Jinnah was overwhelmed at this show of