Abdullah Jan Jamaldini (1922–2016) was a Pakistani

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

thinker, researcher, and literal figure. He was associated with the

Progressive Writers' Movement The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' () or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगतिश� ...

, Pakistan. Jamaldini received the

Pride of Performance Award The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, and ...

in 1990.

Biography

''Jamaldini'' was born on 8 May 1922 in

Nushki Nushki (Balochi and Brahvi: or Noshkay, Nushkay; ) is a city in Nushki District of Balochistan, Pakistan. It lies in the southwest of Quetta, the provincial capital, at an elevation of above sea level. From Nushki, the flat Balochistan desert st ...

Baluchistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region of de ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. He was home-schooled by his father. Later, in 1932, he completed his early education from ''Nushki Primary School''. He then enrolled in ''Sandeman High School'' in Pishin. Later, he took admission in Islamia College Peshawar in 1941 and earned his graduation degree in 1945. After graduation, ''Jamaldini'' entered into government service as ''Naib Tehsildar'' (Assistant to tax officer) but soon resigned from the service. Following his

inclinations, he, along with his other friends, rented a house at ''Balochi street'', which quickly became known as "''Lat Khana''". The house served as the first unofficial institution for progressive and enlightened individuals. The

comrades In political contexts, comrade means a fellow party member. The political use was inspired by the French Revolution, after which it grew into a form of address between socialists and workers. Since the Russian Revolution, popular culture in the ...

also rented a store in ''Suraj Ganj Bazaar'',

Quetta Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...

, where they sold books on

Karl Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...

Engels Friedrich Engels ( ;"Engels"
''

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

, and other socialist intellectuals in addition to stationery. However, the government authorities traced the store and seized the Marxist literature. The ''Lat Khana'' persisted in sharing socialist ideas with friends and doing so, which influenced Jamaldini's perspective on progressive and socialist values. He also became general secretary of the organization ''Balochi Zuban o- Adab - i Diwan'', which was founded in 1951 and whose president was

Mir Gul Khan Naseer Gul Khan Naseer ( Balochi:; Urdu: ) also known as Malek o-Sho'arā Balochistan ( Balochi:; Urdu:); 14 May 1914 – 6 December 1983) was a Pakistani politician, poet, historian, and journalist from Balochistan. Most of his work is in Balochi langu ...

. The organization sponsored the publications of Mir Gul Khan Naseer's Balochi poetry. Later, financial issues forced Jamaldini to move to

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, where he worked as a proof reader in the information department and later as a joint editor of the magazine ''Tulu'' till 1970. Then, he returned to Quetta and started working as a research scholar at the Balochi Academy. After establishment of the

University of Balochistan The University of Balochistan (UoB) (Urdu: جامعہ بلوچستان; Balochi: بلوچستان ء یونیورسٹی , Pashto: د بلوچستان پوهنتون ) also known as Balochistan University, is a public university located in the ...

, he became lecturer for Balochi language there in 1971. ''Jamaldini'' wrote several books on

Balochi literature Balochi literature () is literature written in the Balochi languages." The main Balochi literature is found in poetry, which is purely popular in origin and form Poetry is by the Baloch people, Baloch regarded as the highest form of literature. ...

, feudal system in Balochistan, poverty, and politics. He died on 20 September 2016.

Literary works

* ''Dehat ke Gharib'' * Sardari system in Balochistan * ''Marg o mena'' * ''Lat Khana'' * ''Shama Frozan''

Awards and recognition

Jamaldini was honored with the

in 1990. He also received the Kamal-e-Fun Award in 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jamaldini, Abdullah Jan 1922 births 2016 deaths Balochi-language writers Baloch journalists Marxist writers Pakistani Marxists Pakistani activists Pakistani scholars People from Nushki District Pakistani communist writers