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1. Introduction
We, the Muhajirs of Pakistan, are the direct descendants of the loyal subjects of the Mughal Empire and its successor states. The cultivated Muslims once found at the imperial courts of India are now to be found in the form of Pakistan’s only modern and secular political party: the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). [Translation: United People’s Movement]
Despite the final dissolution of the Mughal Empire in 1857, the Mughal spirit stayed alive inside our hearts and souls. We started looking East and West, and we saw a way to reconstitute our Mughal entity. Our hope was not lost, even after 100 years of British subjugation. Our wish was simply to live as a free people in our own land, a modern resurrection of the Mughal Empire.
In a quest to preserve – but also modernise – our inherited Mughal culture, we created Pakistan. Inspired by the democratic ideals of the Urdu-speaking elites and thinkers, millions of Indian Muslims migrated East and West to the new state. But there was one problem. The inhabitants of the land (the Punjabis, Sindhis, and Pashtuns) did not share the secular, progressive and liberal vision of the migrants. Our problems started the day after we created Pakistan. What began as a pursuit of something akin to the ‘American dream’ became the Muhajirs’ worst nightmare.
I now present to you a decisive chronological account of Muhajir history spanning from Akbar to Altaf.
2. Muhajir’s Glorious Mughal Empire, destroyed by harsh Sharia
The Muhajirs learnt from experience that glory and wealth follows a liberal and secular legal system, and chaos follows the imposition of harsh religious laws.
2.1 Secularism vs. Sharia in the Mughal Empire
Urdu-Speaking (proto-) Muhajirs built the Taj Mahal and countless exquisite buildings and monuments; we fought and many times defeated the British invaders with generals such as Tipu Sultan; we produced some of the greatest art, music, dance, jewellery, literature and poetry the world has ever seen; and in the good times we extended liberal and secular rule which made India by far the wealthiest country on earth of its time.
Urdu Speaking Muhajirs built the Taj Mahal, arguably the most beautiful building on earth.
Then we lost it all. The Emperor Aurangzeb seized power in 1658 after executing his brother Prince Dara Shikoh, the liberal eldest son and appointed successor of Emperor Shah Jahan. Aurangzeb turned away from the secular ideology of Akbar (ruled 1556-1605) which had brought glory. Between 1556 and Aurangzeb’s death in 1707, there were four Mughal Emperors (Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb).Yet after Aurangzeb, there were eleven Mughal Emperors in 53 years (1707-1760).
Akbar’s rule paved the way for pluralism, liberalism and secularism. All religions were allowed to be practised relatively freely. Akbar himself founded a syncretistic religious tradition of his own (Din-e-Elahi), seeking to combine human rationality, Sufism (Islamic mysticism), and Indic philosophies. This was certainly extraordinary for an era that saw the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition in Europe. Above all, Akbar’s government granted personal freedoms, with limited State intervention in the private lives of individuals.
Aurangzeb destroyed the Mughal Empire by imposing harsh sharia laws
In contrast to Akbar’s rule, Aurangzeb created the conditions for the destruction of the Mughal Empire with his imposition of harsh sharia. Aurangzeb’s Islamism ended up breaking the all-India economic ties that had strengthened the Mughals. His greedy successors grew up illiterate in anything except Theology, and many spent their entire time seeking hedonistic pleasure and killing anyone who challenged their rule. Aurangzeb outlawed alcohol, gambling, narcotics, music and dancing.
Such ‘terrorist’ behaviour led to chronic consequences. Whenever alcohol is banned, criminal networks start making money by bootlegging. Whenever gambling is banned, private gambling houses are set up by gangsters who often start bribing local law enforcement officials to keep their gambling dens open – this in turn starts corrupting the government. Whenever narcotics are banned, brutal gangs start dealing drugs by exploiting innocent children (it is, thus, better to regulate the use of hard narcotics and treat it as an illness). Whenever music and dancing is banned and men and women are kept separate, the natural desire of men and women to congregate is driven underground and vast numbers of people start living secret double lives.
Criminal gangs became rich due to Aurangzeb’s policies. Social structures were diminished and Hindus/Sikhs were persecuted, which led to a fatal weakening of the Mughal Empire. After Aurangzeb, the Mughal economy suffered due to 3 decades of calamitous wars of succession. There were 6 Emperors in the 12 years after Aurangzeb, and there was permanent war. Mughal Armies were not being paid on time, the soldiers were being mistreated, useless sycophants were being promoted as generals, and nobody wants to fight for a greedy king.
We, the Muhajirs of Pakistan, are the direct descendants of the loyal subjects of the Mughal Empire and its successor states. The cultivated Muslims once found at the imperial courts of India are now to be found in the form of Pakistan’s only modern and secular political party: the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). [Translation: United People’s Movement]
Despite the final dissolution of the Mughal Empire in 1857, the Mughal spirit stayed alive inside our hearts and souls. We started looking East and West, and we saw a way to reconstitute our Mughal entity. Our hope was not lost, even after 100 years of British subjugation. Our wish was simply to live as a free people in our own land, a modern resurrection of the Mughal Empire.
In a quest to preserve – but also modernise – our inherited Mughal culture, we created Pakistan. Inspired by the democratic ideals of the Urdu-speaking elites and thinkers, millions of Indian Muslims migrated East and West to the new state. But there was one problem. The inhabitants of the land (the Punjabis, Sindhis, and Pashtuns) did not share the secular, progressive and liberal vision of the migrants. Our problems started the day after we created Pakistan. What began as a pursuit of something akin to the ‘American dream’ became the Muhajirs’ worst nightmare.
I now present to you a decisive chronological account of Muhajir history spanning from Akbar to Altaf.
2. Muhajir’s Glorious Mughal Empire, destroyed by harsh Sharia
The Muhajirs learnt from experience that glory and wealth follows a liberal and secular legal system, and chaos follows the imposition of harsh religious laws.
2.1 Secularism vs. Sharia in the Mughal Empire
Urdu-Speaking (proto-) Muhajirs built the Taj Mahal and countless exquisite buildings and monuments; we fought and many times defeated the British invaders with generals such as Tipu Sultan; we produced some of the greatest art, music, dance, jewellery, literature and poetry the world has ever seen; and in the good times we extended liberal and secular rule which made India by far the wealthiest country on earth of its time.
Urdu Speaking Muhajirs built the Taj Mahal, arguably the most beautiful building on earth.
Then we lost it all. The Emperor Aurangzeb seized power in 1658 after executing his brother Prince Dara Shikoh, the liberal eldest son and appointed successor of Emperor Shah Jahan. Aurangzeb turned away from the secular ideology of Akbar (ruled 1556-1605) which had brought glory. Between 1556 and Aurangzeb’s death in 1707, there were four Mughal Emperors (Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb).Yet after Aurangzeb, there were eleven Mughal Emperors in 53 years (1707-1760).
Akbar’s rule paved the way for pluralism, liberalism and secularism. All religions were allowed to be practised relatively freely. Akbar himself founded a syncretistic religious tradition of his own (Din-e-Elahi), seeking to combine human rationality, Sufism (Islamic mysticism), and Indic philosophies. This was certainly extraordinary for an era that saw the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition in Europe. Above all, Akbar’s government granted personal freedoms, with limited State intervention in the private lives of individuals.
Aurangzeb destroyed the Mughal Empire by imposing harsh sharia laws
In contrast to Akbar’s rule, Aurangzeb created the conditions for the destruction of the Mughal Empire with his imposition of harsh sharia. Aurangzeb’s Islamism ended up breaking the all-India economic ties that had strengthened the Mughals. His greedy successors grew up illiterate in anything except Theology, and many spent their entire time seeking hedonistic pleasure and killing anyone who challenged their rule. Aurangzeb outlawed alcohol, gambling, narcotics, music and dancing.
Such ‘terrorist’ behaviour led to chronic consequences. Whenever alcohol is banned, criminal networks start making money by bootlegging. Whenever gambling is banned, private gambling houses are set up by gangsters who often start bribing local law enforcement officials to keep their gambling dens open – this in turn starts corrupting the government. Whenever narcotics are banned, brutal gangs start dealing drugs by exploiting innocent children (it is, thus, better to regulate the use of hard narcotics and treat it as an illness). Whenever music and dancing is banned and men and women are kept separate, the natural desire of men and women to congregate is driven underground and vast numbers of people start living secret double lives.
Criminal gangs became rich due to Aurangzeb’s policies. Social structures were diminished and Hindus/Sikhs were persecuted, which led to a fatal weakening of the Mughal Empire. After Aurangzeb, the Mughal economy suffered due to 3 decades of calamitous wars of succession. There were 6 Emperors in the 12 years after Aurangzeb, and there was permanent war. Mughal Armies were not being paid on time, the soldiers were being mistreated, useless sycophants were being promoted as generals, and nobody wants to fight for a greedy king.
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