Rich tributes paid to Qissa Khwani firing victims

PESHAWAR: The members of the literary and cultural organisation, Gandhara Hindko Board, visited the Yagar-e-Shaheedaan (memorials to the martyrs) in historic Qissa Khwani Bazaar on Monday to remember those sons of the soil who were either killed or injured when the British troops opened fire on the protesters in Peshawar on April 23, 1930. The participants walked to the two historic monuments located in Chowk Shaheedaan in the form of a procession from Bazaar-e-Misgaran. They were holding a banner inscribed with slogans to remember the citizens who were killed in the firing 88 years ago. Slogans were raised to pay tributes to the victims. The participants of the procession placed floral wreaths on the monuments and offered fateha for the victims.

The speakers said the April 23, 1930 Qissa Khwani firing was an important and unforgettable incident of the freedom struggle that happened in the Walled City of Peshawar.

The speakers demanded the government to highlight this significant incident properly by commemorating the day at the official level so that youth come to know about the struggle waged by our elders and sacrifices they offered for winning independence. They said the University of Peshawar should encourage students to carry out academic research at the doctoral level to highlight this important event of the freedom struggle. The speakers called for renovating the memorials to martyrs and re-fixing the old inscriptions on the monuments.

It may be mentioned here that the board has staged rallies, arranged seminars, conferences, photographic exhibitions and brought out publications in the past to highlight the great sacrifice offered at Qissa Khwani.