PA asked to restart quarterly stipend for widow of late Pashto poet

F.P. Report

PESHAWAR: Fearing the discontinuation of quarterly stipend by Pakistan Academy of Letters, Islamabad (PAL), a widow of renowned Pashto poet, late Azam Khan ak Azam Da Kurwai, asked relevant authorities  to resume stipend.

Expressing grief over stoppage of quarterly stipend, Zar Pari Bibi, 66, widow of late Azam Khan (1937-69), informed she was getting stipend on behalf of her husband as she could not fill out form sent to her by authorities concerned in Islamabad, asking details of her properties and documents of her late husband.

She said the authorities have warned her to fill out form otherwise her stipend would be stopped from upcoming quarters.

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 and also used to write features for Radio Pakistan, Peshawar on various social issues. He was contemporary of Hamza Baba, Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil, Qalandar Moomand, and Ajmal Khattak,

“My husband, Azam Khan was a known Pashto poet and feature right and one of her Pashto poetry collection titled ‘Da Ghalbail Zrrah Fariyad’ way back in 1963, the foreword was written by Ajmal Khattak and another ‘Da Watan Meena’ its foreword was penned down by Hamza Baba was ready for publication but couldn’t be published owing to his poverty and illness with TB. On December 10, 2018, I received two forms from PAL asking each for details of my husband’s manuscripts and properties,” Ms Pari added.

The widow complained how she could produce those things at that old age because after death of her husband she had to bring up her kids by doing households and being sick she was unable to search it in the public libraries or Pashto Academy, UoP. 

Ms Pari feared she would lose the quarterly stipend with which she could only afford to buy medicines. The elderly woman appealed to the director general and Chairman PAL, Islamabad 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.

“Being old, sick and out of resources, I am not able to go after the manuscripts, and articles scattered through different magazines. Great literary figures including Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari, Samandar Khan Samandar, Said Akbar Sabir, Ayoub Sabir and many others were close friends of my late husband,” she recalled.

Ms Pari narrated that her husband’s hujra used to be abuzz with literary gatherings and activities but then a fatal disease struck him and she was left with no option but to do households to feed my kids.