Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi facts for kids

Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi (Urdu: اشتیاق حسين قریشی ) (20 November 1903 – 22 January 1981) popularly known as I.H. Qureshi, SP, HI, was a Pakistani nationalist historian and playwright. He was the Vice Chancellor of the University of Karachi from 1961 till 1971.

An early activist of the historic Pakistan Movement, Qureshi served in the ministries of education and frontier regions as the secretary; in addition, he was elected a member of the parliament of Pakistan. But, due to his association with academia, he resigned from his government appointments and joined the academic faculty at the Columbia University as a professor of South Asian history. But soon, he returned to Pakistan and founded the National Language Authority (NLA) in the 1970s and helped set up the History Department at the University of the Punjab. Later, Qureshi joined the faculty of history at the University of Karachi where he remained the remainder of his life. Qureshi is also credited for editing a four-volume series on history of Pakistan.

Biography

Early life and education

Qureshi was born on 20 November 1903 in a noble family of Patiyali, Kasganj District, a town near Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh, British India. He did matriculation in 1916. At this time, he took active part in Khilafat movement. He did graduation and M.A. in history from St. Stephen's College, Delhi, with distinction. In 1927, he got M.A. in Persian. He served as lecturer in history at St. Stephen's College from 1928 to 1944. Between 1937 and 1940, he studied at Cambridge University for a PhD degree. The topic of his thesis was Administration of Sultanate of Delhi. During this period, he also briefly joined the Pakistan Movement founded by Choudhary Rahmat Ali.

After returning from England, he joined Delhi University, where he was appointed professor of history, and subsequently, the dean of the Faculty of Arts. He also served as acting vice chancellor of the Delhi University. In 1947, during the Partition riots, when the Muslim students of the St Stephen's College had to be evacuated to the Purana Qila, Dr Qureshi's library was completely burnt down by the mobs.

Career in Pakistan

After seeing suffering from riots, he migrated to Pakistan in 1948. There, he continued his academic and political career, and served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. In 1949, he was appointed professor of history at the University of the Punjab, Lahore. He also joined the Government of Pakistan as Minister of Refugee Rehabilitation, and later as Minister of Education. Later on, he joined the Columbia University, New York where he wrote his famous book, the Muslim Community of the South Asia, as a story of the trials and tribulations of the Muslims in the South Asia.

In late 1950s, Qureshi was brought back to Pakistan by Ayub Khan's martial regime to aid in the crafting of state's new education policy. On his return, he played a pivotal role in the establishment of the University of Karachi and remained its vice-chancellor for many years.

Political activities

• Elected to the Constituent Assembly of India, and then to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan
• Between 1949–1954, he remained deputy minister, then minister of state and finally as minister with cabinet rank in Government of Pakistan.

Awards and recognition

• In recognition of his services, he was decorated with the order of Sitara-e-Pakistan (Star of Pakistan) by the President of Pakistan.
• On 20 November 2001, Pakistan Post issued a commemorative postage stamp to honor him in its 'Men of Letters' series.
• The annual Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi Memorial Lecture continues to be organised by the History Society of St. Stephen's College.
• Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi was nominated as one of the founding members of Pakistan Academy of Letters in recognition of his services to Pakistani languages and literature.

See also

• University of Karachi
• National Language Authority