Widow of Pashto poet appeals to PAL

PESHAWAR: The widow of noted Pashto poet Azam Khan aka Azam Da Kurwai, has asked the Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL), Islamabad not to stop her quarterly stipend, which she feared may be discontinued because she could not fill in a form sent by the authorities concerned. Zar Pari Bibi, 66, told The News that she had received a quarterly stipend on behalf of her husband. She said she couldn’t fill out a form sent to her by PAL, Islamabad, asking for details of her properties and manuscripts of her late husband. According to her, the form warned that if she did not fill it, her stipend would be stopped from next quarter. Noted Pashto poet Azam Khan had contributed to Pashto literary magazines and Pashto newspapers including Olas, Jamhoor-i-Islam, Laar, Baang-i- Haram and Shahbaz. He also wrote features for Radio Pakistan, Peshawar on various social issues. He was contemporary of Hamza Baba, Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil, QalandarMomand, andAjmalKhattak. “My husband Azam Khan was a known Pashto poet and writer and one of his Pashto poetry collections titled ‘Da Ghalbail Zrrah Fariyad’ way back in 1963, and another ‘Da Watan Meena’ was ready for publication but couldn’t be published owing to his poverty and illness. On December 10, 2018, I received two forms from PAL, each asking for details of my husband’smanuscripts and properties,” Pari recalled. She feared she would lose the quarterly stipend, with which she could only afford to buymedicines. The elderlywoman appealed to the director general and PAL Islamabad chairman to take notice of her problem in the wake of her old age and sickness and also conduct verification of her husband’s publications and literary contributions on its own.