PESHAWAR: Speakers at a condolence reference paid rich tributes to the late Sufi Bashir Ahmad for serving literature and literati alike.
A literary and cultural organization, Gandhara Hindko Board, had arranged the function for the Bashir Ahmad who was popular with the literary circles of Peshawar as Sufi Bashir and passed away recently in Peshawar at the age of 81.
A well-known Urdu and Hindko language poet and playwright and the recipient of the national civil award, Professor Nasser Ali Syed, presided over the condolence reference hosted at the Rampura office of the board.
An author, writer and poet of Urdu and Hindko language, Professor Hussam Hur, was the chief guest while Professor Rukhsana Saman and elderly writer and intellectual Iqbal Sikandar were the guests of honour on the occasion. Those who recalled their association with late Sufi Bashir Ahmad and remembered him with exemplary words included the board general secretary Muhammad Ziauddin, Ahmad Nadeem Awan, Sikandar Hayat Sikandar, Saeed Paaris, Waseem Shahid, Professor Saeed Ahmad, Nisar Ahmad, Syed Khalid Masoor Bukhari, Dr Khadim Ibrahim, Mushtaq Hussain Bukhari and Naseem-e-Sahar.
The speakers said Sufi Bashir Ahmad was a devoted lover of literature and literati.
“He was a moving spirit behind most of the literary gatherings arranged by different organisations in Peshawar, including Gandhara Hindko Board,” said Muhammad Ziauddin in his address, adding he played his due role as the member of the Executive Committee of the Gandhara Hindko Board.
Professor Nasser Ali Syed spoke high of Sufi Bashir Ahmad and shed light on the coordinating role he would play in facilitating a number of literary events in Peshawar till last days of his life.
Research Associate at the Gandhara Hindko Academy, Ali Awais Khayal, enumerated the efforts made by Sifi Bashir Ahmad in making literary functions a success by coordinating these functions.
He said the Gandhara Hindko Board arranged literary sessions every week on Friday to critically analyze and evaluate the Hindko language literature.
“We had announced at the last session (on February 4) in his presence that the next sitting scheduled for February 11 would be arranged to acknowledge the literary efforts of Ustad Bashir. We did not know that this session would turn out to be his condolence reference,” said the young researcher with tears in his eyes.
The participants offered dua at the end for the eternal peace of the departed soul of Bashir Ahmad whose name carried the prefix “Sufi (saint) ” as he was impressed by the thoughts of the Sufis and the life that he lived vividly proved that.
