Unsung heroes

Part - XXVII
Random thoughts
First I would like to write about another great patriot, Saeed Ahmad Kushtiwala (Saeed Bhai). He belonged to Punjabi Sodagaran Dilli and many from his community settled in Karachi. They are mostly respected businessmen, known for their generosity and social work.
Saeed Bhai’s elder brother had a hardware shop near Denso Hall where they sold excellent imported locks, hinges, etc. When I went there in 1978 to buy things for our under-construction house, I also saw many aluminium products and was informed that these were produced by the compmany run by Saeed Bhai. After my liaison officer in Karachi, Mushtaq Ahmed, made the arrangements, we visited the factory the next day. It was a modern facility with licence from a foreign company. They produced doors, windows, etc. They had an excellent die-maker and they later produced aluminium forgings for us. Our first generation of centrifuge machines consisted mostly of aluminium alloys and Saeed Bhai helped us a lot in their production.
Both Saeed Bhai and Mian Farooq always insisted that we have meals with them. After I had informed them that I always ate with my younger sister and her family, with whom I stayed whenever I was in Karachi, we reached a compromise. They would both have some special dishes prepared and then join us at my sister’s house. My sister is also an excellent cook who taught her Bengali cooks to make delicious Mughal and Dakani dishes. Though quite capable, she goes to the kitchen regularly to instruct and guide the cooks. Sometimes other friends joined us.
Now I sometimes do go out to dinners hosted by dear friends such as Senator A Haseeb Khan, Mehbab Chowla, Sultan Chowla, Arif Habib, Khalid Tawab or at Lal Qila of Umar. More often than not we are joined by Senator Yasin Malik, Haseeb Bhai, Younus Bhai (Younus Khamisani), Arif Bhai, Mian Arshad, Kamal Bhai (Captain Kamal Mahmoodi), Dr Atta, etc. My sister, brother-in-law and niece enjoy their company. Mian Arshad keeps up the tradition started by his father, Mian Farooq, of bringing delicious nihari and pomfret fish. Khalil Bhai (Khalil Nainitalwala) brings delicious traditional Delhi dishes of potato and meat, my nephew, Tahir, brings paya and barbecue and Saeed Bhai’s daughter sends unmatchable biryani.
Another patriotic gem of a person who helped us enormously was late Brig Inamul Haq. When Gen Zia staged the coup, he was brigade commander of Gen Muhammad Iqbal Khan, corps commander of Lahore. Tall, handsome and refined, he was a dear friend of competent mechanical engineer, late Col Qazi Rashid Ali. In Lahore we also met late Eng Hanif Chaudhry who had an engineering degree from Holland. He ran a workshop and we helped him set up casting facilities for the bases of our centrifuges. With a little guidance, he was soon delivering flawless products. He had a Dutch wife and we had cordial relations with them.
Brig Inam once told us (and this was later confirmed by Gen Iqbal) that, while addressing senior officers in Lahore, Gen Zia had openly said that he would see Bhutto hanged – no matter what. After his retirement, Brig Inam opened a travel agency and a supply company that delivered to strategic organisations. When we needed maraging steel, we asked him to try to get it from abroad. Brig Inam approached a company, where the managing director advised him to contact their mother company.
Without consulting us, he travelled and contacted his friend, Arshad, to place the order. The company and an undercover agent asked him to give $5,000 to a customs officer (another agent) to get the export permit. Upon handing over the money he was arrested and a world-wide malicious propaganda campaign unleashed against us. Later, when he went to a European country for some work, he was arrested and deported to another country where a lengthy legal battle ensued.
At the request of the then, secretary-general foreign affairs, and with the approval of Ghulam Ishaq Khan, KRL bore the legal expenses. Contrary to expectations, the punishment was rather mild, probably due to Pakistan’s support in the Afghan war. When he returned to Pakistan, he was placed in a ‘safe house’.
Yet another great Pakistani was Inam Shah, a friend of Abdul Jamil from the high commission in London. He helped us a lot by supplying useful materials and equipment. He was a fine, soft-spoken, always smiling person. He was also a friend of Col Qazi’s. He supplied us with Hardinge Precision Machines. They were extremely stable and precise and we made good use of them. Col Qazi, Eng Nasimuddin, Eng Tariq and Eng Salim Mirza developed and produced a somewhat similar machine. You could not tell the difference.
To be continued
Email: dr.a.quadeer.khan@gmail.com