Ghulam Murtaza Syed (Sindhi) ( Sindhi: غلام مرتضي سيد, z17 January 1904 – 25 April 1995), known as G.M Syed (Sindhi) was a prominent Sindhi politician, who is known for his scholarly work, passing only constitutional resolution in favor of the establishment of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

from

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

's Sindh Assembly (which is now

Sindh Assembly The Provincial Assembly of Sindh ( ur, ) is a unicameral legislature of elected representatives of the Pakistani provinces, Pakistani province of Sindh, and is located in Karachi, the provincial capital. It was established under Article 106 of ...

) in 1943. Later proposing ideological groundwork for separate Sindhi identity and laying the foundations of

Sindhudesh Sindhudesh ( sd, سنڌو ديش, ) is an idea of a separate homeland for Sindhis proposed by Sindhi nationalist parties for the creation of a Sindhi state, which would be either autonomous within Pakistan or independent from it. The movement is ...

movement. He is regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern

Sindhi nationalism Sindhi nationalism also known as Sindhi Nationalist Movement ( Sindhi: سنڌي قومپرستي يا سنڌي قومي تحريڪ) was launched in the 1972 to separate Sindh from Pakistan. After Bangladesh became independent in 1971, G.M. Syed g ...

. G.M Syed (Sindhi) started his political career at the age of 16, when he organised

Khilafat A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...

Conference at his hometown, Sann, on 17 March 1920. Syed (Sindhi) was one of the earliest Sindhi politician who sought the creation of Islamic Pakistan, and became a vocal supporter of the

Two-Nation Theory The two-nation theory is an ideology of religious nationalism that influenced the decolonisation of the British Raj in South Asia. According to this ideology, Indian Muslims and Indian Hindus are two separate nations, with their own customs, ...

, advocated by the Muslim League leader Mohammed Ali Jinnah; Syed Sindhi's religious zeal for a purely Islamic state is witnessed after the Manzilgah incident, where he wanted to cleanse Sindh of its Hindus, stating: "all Hindus shall be driven out of Sindh like the Jews from Germany". However, once the independent nation was formed, he became the first

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

of the state in 1948. He restated the political implementation of Sufi ideologies which advocated for Islamic principles, secularism, Sindhi nationalism and laid the basis for

Movement. He spent approximately thirty years of his life in imprisonment and house arrests for opposing the anti- Sindh policies. He was entitled as the ''prisoner of conscience'' by Amnesty International in 1995. He died during his house arrest in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

on 26 April 1995.

Early life

Childhood: 1904–15

G.M. Syed (Sindhi) was born to the Sadat family of Sindh in the town of Sann on 17 January 1904. Syed (Sindhi) was an infant when his father Syed Mohammed Shah Kazmi was killed due to a family feud on 1 November 1905. After the death of his father, Syed (Sindhi) was the only male infant in the family, therefore in 1906 the British Government took his family property in its custody and his family was given the monthly pension by the

Court of Wards The Court of Wards and Liveries was a court established during the reign of Henry VIII in England. Its purpose was to administer a system of feudal dues; but as well as the revenue collection, the court was also responsible for wardship and liv ...

. He was admitted to a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

at the age of six and completed his 5 years of primary education in Sindhi, in the year 1915. The female elders of his family and Mother Haneefa Bibi decided to

home-school Homeschooling or home schooling, also known as home education or elective home education (EHE), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted by a parent, tutor, or an onlin ...

him in order to safeguard him from family feud and enmity as he was the only male heir in the family. He was taught

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

at home.

Teenage: 1920–24

G.M Syed (Sindhi) started his politics from participating in the Khilafat Movement. He first attended Khilafat Conference held on 7th, 8th, and 9 February 1920 in

Larkana Larkana ( ur, , translit=lāṛkāna; sd, لاڙڪاڻو, translit=lāṛkāṇo) is a city located in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the 15th largest city of Pakistan by population. It is home to the Indus Valley civilization site M ...

. He was inspired by the speeches of

Abul Kalam Azad Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin Ahmed bin Khairuddin Al-Hussaini Azad (; 11 November 1888 – 22 February 1958) was an Indian independence activist, Islamic theologian, writer and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress. Following In ...

Abdul Bari Firangi Mahali Abdul Bari Firangi Mahali (1878–1926) was an Indian Muslim scholar and writer from the Firangi Mahal palace in Lucknow. History His family moved from Sihali, Barabanki to the Firangi Mahal around 1692. In 1915, he was residing in Lucknow. P ...

Maulana Shaukat Ali Shaukat Ali (10 March 1873– 26 November 1938; Urdu: مولانا شوكت علي) was an Indian Muslim member of the Khilafat Movement. He was the elder brother of the renowned political leader Mohammad Ali Jouhar. Early life Shaukat Ali was ...

and

Shaikh Abdul Majeed Sindhi , native_name = , native_name_lang = sd , image = , imagesize = , caption = , pseudonym = , birth_name = Jetha Nand , birth_date = , birth_place = Thatta, Sindh , death_date = , death_place = ...

. He himself called upon the next Khilafat Conference on 17 March 1920 in his hometown Sann. Two days after this conference, his native town Sann observed a shutter-down strike in protest against the injustices of the Allied Powers against the

Ottoman Caliphate The Caliphate of the Ottoman Empire ( ota, خلافت مقامى, hilâfet makamı, office of the caliphate) was the claim of the heads of the Turkish Ottoman dynasty to be the caliphs of Islam in the late medieval and the early modern era. ...

on 20 March 1920. He remained active throughout the entire Khilafat Movement afterward. He addressed the Khilafat Conference held on 26 March 1920, in

Makhdoom Bilawal Makhdoom Bilawal Bin Jam Hassan Samo ( sd, مخدوم بلاول بن جام حسن سمو), (Born 1451 AD/ 856 AH Sindh) was a sufi saint, philosopher and poet from Sindh, Pakistan. He is also referred as Makhdum Bilal or Bilali Makhdum. Life ...

's Mausoleum as the youngest speaker. He was of a short-height and stood upon a wooden chair to be visible to the audience during his speech. He met

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

on 27 April 1921 at the Sann railway station while Mr. Gandhi was traveling from Dadu to

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

. Gandhi instructed him to wear

Khadi Khadi (, ), derived from khaddar, is a hand-spun and woven natural fibre cloth promoted by Mahatma Gandhi as ''swadeshi'' (self-sufficiency) for the freedom struggle of the Indian subcontinent, and the term is used throughout India, Pakistan ...

. Syed (Sindhi) visited the office of the Collector in

on 23 June 1921 to free his lands from the custody of

but he was refused. He filed a complaint against the Collector and Mukhtiarkar on 4 December 1922, for hurdling the delivery of his lands from custody. Finally, he was awarded his lands back from the custody of Court of Wards in the year 1924, after two years of legal prosecution.

Political activism

Syed (Sindhi) was the founder of Sindh Awami Mahaz, which went on to join the

National Awami Party The National Awami Party (NAP), translated from Urdu to English as National People's Party, was the major left-wing political party in East and West Pakistan. It was founded in 1957 in Dhaka, erstwhile East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh), by A ...

(National Peoples Party). Like Ibrahim Joyo, Syed (Sindhi) blended

with

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

and Sufism through the ideas of

Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

and

Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

. Syed Sindhi's position brought him ample opportunity to have free income through tributes, cash offerings and landed property. This lifestyle was rejected by him, subsequently he plunged into politics with enthusiasm. Politically, he evolved and traveled from Pan-Islamist to Indian nationalist and then Pakistani nationalist, having joined Muslim League; and ended with being a Sindhi nationalist.

AV School

In the early 1920s, Syed (Sindhi) opened Anglo-Vernacular (AV) school in his village Sann, where education for certain language classes was free of cost. AV School offered combo of Sindhi education with English language. The school also offered options of Arabic, French and Persian languages. Prominent Sindhi educationist Ibrahim Joyo was also schooled at AV.

Timeline

*At the early age of fourteen years, Syed (Sindhi) started his career as an activist. * In 1919, became Chairman of the School Board of his own

tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administ ...

. He later became its President. * In 1929, was elected as a President of Karachi District Local Board. * In 1930, organized the Sindh Hari (Peasants) Conference and became its Secretary. * In 1937, was for the first time elected a member of Sindh Legislative Assembly. * In 1938, joined the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party established in Dhaka in 1906 when a group of prominent Muslim politicians met the Viceroy of British India, Lord Minto, with the goal of securing Muslim interests on the Indian subcont ...

. In 1940, he became Minister of Education in Sindh. * In 1941, became one of the members of the Central Committee of the Muslim League. * In 1943, became President of the Sindh Muslim League. * In 1946, conditions compelled him to dissociate from the Muslim League, and formed a new party named the Progressive Muslim League. The same year, he was elected as leader of the Coalition Party in the Sindh Assembly. * In 1954, acted as Chairman of Sindhi Adabi Board. * In 1966, founded Bazm-e-Soofia-e Sindh. * In 1969, formed the Sindh United Front. * In 1972, formed Jeay Sindh Mahaz .

Jeay Sindh movement

Syed (Sindhi) was the architect of "Jiy-e-Sindh" movement, aimed at achieving

. He is also the author of more than 60 books, (with) subjects ranging from politics, religion, culture, literature and commentaries on famous poet

Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai ( sd, شاھ عبداللطيف ڀٽائي, ur, ; 1689/1690 – 21 December 1752), commonly known by the honorifics ''Lakhino Latif'', ''Latif Ghot'', ''Bhittai'', and ''Bhit Jo Shah'', was a Sindhi Sufi mystic, and ...

. For his part as a political thinker, literary figure and mystic, he dominated the political arena of pre and post-partition era for decades, while he remained in jail for 30 years. On 19 January 1992, Syed (Sindhi) was put under house arrest, his house was declared a sub-jail. He died on 25 April 1995.

Biography

Syed (Sindhi) was the author of more than sixty books, written mainly in Sindhi, but also

and

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Oskar Verkaaik
as "in many ways a remarkably productive, original, and largely autodidact intellectual, creating his own personal interpretation of Islam out of a range of intellectual influences such as 19th-century Islamic reform, Darwinian

evolution theory Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation t ...

theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion ...

, 18th century

Sindhi poetry The Culture of Sindhi ( sd, سنڌ جي ثقافت) has its roots in the Indus Valley civilization. Sindh has been shaped by the largely desert region, the natural resources it had available, and continuous foreign influence. The Indus or Sindhu ...

Marxism Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialectical ...

, classical Sufism,

German idealism German idealism was a philosophical movement that emerged in Germany in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It developed out of the work of Immanuel Kant in the 1780s and 1790s, and was closely linked both with Romanticism and the revolutionary ...

, and probably more." Some of his well-known books are: *''Janam Guzarium Jin Sein'' (Sindhi) *''Dayar Dil Dastan-e- Muhabt'' (Sindhi) *''Sindh Ja Soorma'' (Sindhi) *''Sindh Speaks'' (English) *''Struggle for New Sindh'' (English) *''Religion and Reality'' (English) *''Shah Latif's Message'' (English) *''A Nation in Chains'' (English)

References

External links

Information about G M Syed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Syed, G. M. 1904 births 1995 deaths Pakistani writers Sindhi people Pakistani scholars Pakistani Theosophists Islamic philosophers Muslim reformers Leaders of the Pakistan Movement Indian independence activists from Pakistan Pakistan Muslim League politicians Pakistani prisoners and detainees Sindhi-language writers Pakistan Movement activists from Sindh