Death of Pashto research scholar condoled

PESHAWAR: Researchers and scholars have condoled the death of noted senior Pashto poet and research scholar Dr Darwaish Khan Yousafzai.

Extending condolences with the bereaved family of the poet, Dr Khadim Hussain, provincial culture secretary of the Awami National Party (ANP), and Faizul Wahab Faiz said that the death of Dr Darwaish Khan Yousafzai had created a vacuum, which cannot be filled for a long time. “I on behalf of ANP condole the sad demise of noted Pashto poet and research scholar Dr Darwaish with his bereaved family. His death indeed has created a vacuum that would take a time too long to be filled,” the statement read.

Dr Khadim Hussain termed the death of Dr Darwaish an irreparable loss to the Pashto language, literature and Pakhtun nation at large. “Darwaish Yousafzai was really a mendicant as his name suggested and was an extensively read and a gem of men having varied tastes and had mastery over history, linguistics, culture and literature,” he stated. According to his close colleague, Faizul Wahab Faiz, Dr Darwaish has a few research works on linguistics and Khushal Khan Khattak to his credit and would be published posthumously with consent of his family members.

“Dr Darwaish had received his early education from his village school and after qualifying pre-medical education, he went to Dhaka Medical College the erstwhile Bengal but left halfway owing to the debacle of the East Pakistan in 1971 and completed rest of his medical education in Peshawar,” Faiz added.

Dr Darwaish, 71, passed away Wednesday last. He was though eye specialist yet he was a great literary visionary and remained an active member of Da Adabi Dostaanu Maraka, a reputed literary organization in district Mardan. The poet had named his children after his poetry collections namely ‘Lawangeen’, ‘Wawareen’, ‘Fakhre Afghan’, ‘Zarghuna’ and ‘Muska’. Also he had brought out a very important book on phonology titled ‘ Pakhto Da Zubo More ‘ (Pashto-the mother of languages) and yet another research work on various aspects of Khushal Khan Khattak published just a month ago.