By TwoCircles.net staff reporter

New Delhi : Urdu Akademy Delhi will hold the inaugural session of its programmes to mark the ongoing celebrations of First War of Independence 1857 at Aiwan-e-Ghalib here at 5 p.m. Thursday.

Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit will inaugurate the session while Vice-Chancellor Jamia Millia Islamia Professor Mushirul Hassan will preside over the programme. Khwaja Hassan Thani Nizami and Mr. Naseem Mirza Changezi, who is the grandson of Gen. Bakht Khan, will grace the occasion as Chief Guests.

Professor Iftikhar Alam Khan will present a paper on Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and 1857 while Professor Siddiqur Rahman Qidwai, Dr. Aslam Perwez and Professor Sharif Hussain Qasmi will present their papers on Mirza Ghalib and 1857, Bahadur Shah Zafar and 1857 and Ulema of Delhi and 1857 respectively.

Besides, some verses of Rahi Masoom Raza's long poem 1857, will be presented by Bahroop Theatre Group in a dramatic manner. Some other poems on 1857 and Independence Movement will also be presented.