Altaf Hassan Qureshi (born March 3, 1932) is a Pakistani

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

journalist, political analyst, author, and editor-in-chief of monthly

Urdu Digest ''Urdu Digest'' () is a Pakistani monthly Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it ...

Early life and education

Qureshi was born on March 3, 1932, in

Hisar district Hisar district is one of the 22 districts of Haryana, India. Hisar city serves as the district headquarters. Hisar district has four sub-divisions that is, Hisar, Barwala, Hansi and Narnaud, each headed by an SDM. The district is also part of ...

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 migrated to

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in 1947 and settled in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. He got his master's degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from

University of Punjab The University of the Punjab (UoP) is a public research university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Founded in 1882, its international influence has made it one of the most prestigious universities in South Asia; being the oldest and largest publ ...

Career

Qureshi's elder brother ''Ejaz Hassan Qureshi'' had launched

in 1959, and he took the responsibility of being its first editor. He has been doing the editorial job for the digest to date. Besides Urdu Digest, Qureshi also pens columns in Urdu newspapers like Jang and others. Qureshi started his career as a journalist when the ideological conflict between Communists and Islamists was at its peak in the 1960s and 1970s. He and his brother joined the right-wing camp and backed the religious forces working for an Islamic political system in Pakistan. He has been influenced by the writings of

Abul A'la Maududi Abul A'la al-Maududi (; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist, and scholar active in British India and later, following the partition, in Pakistan. Described by Wilfred C ...

, a revolutionary Islamic scholar. He and his brother were jailed several times by the governments due to their opposing views and writings. His political analyses during the

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

separation movement, after the

military coups A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a di ...

, and on other critical national events got the attention of every school of thought in the country.

Books

* Mulaqaatein * ''Jang e Setambar Ki Yaadein'' (Memories of Indo-Pakistani War of 1965) * ''Muqabil Hai Aaina'' * ''Chhay Nukaat Ki Sachi Tasveer'' (Views on Six point movement) * ''Mazeed Mulaqaatein'' * ''Mulaqaatein Kaya Kaya'' (Interviews of different famous personalities) * Nouk e Zaban

Awards

Qureshi is recipient of the following awards: *

Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...

from government of Pakistan * ''Life Time Achievement Award'' from

All Pakistan Newspapers Society All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) is an organization of major Pakistani newspapers, their publishers, companies, and corporations. It includes the Jang Group of Newspapers, Dawn Group of Newspapers, and Nawa-i-Waqt Group of Newspapers.

and

Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors The Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) has worked since its foundation in 1951 as the combined body of newspaper editors in Pakistan

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qureshi, Altaf Hassan 1932 births Living people Pakistani male journalists Pakistani columnists Pakistani editors Pakistani prisoners and detainees Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz