By IRNA
New Delhi : Media is called fourth pillar of democracy and journalists are supposed to be the voice of general public as well as helping hand of the government and officials, but their contributions are largely ignored both by the people and government.
Even people don’t remember those journalists who laid their lives for the cause of the society. Till today same has happened with one of the greatest sons of the soil Maulvi Mohammad Baqar, who started his periodical Dehli Urdu Akhbar in 1836 and continued its publications till his last breath on 15 September 1857.
Maulvi Baqar published around one thousand issues of his Dehli Urdu Akhbar during its 21 years of publications, but unfortunately only 16 issues are preserved in the National Archives.
But heroes can hardly be forgotten forever. Same has happened with Maulvi Mohammad Baqar Hamedani.
A one day seminar was organized here at the Culture House of Islamic Republic of Iran to commemorate the great Indian hero who fought the British colonialists by his pen.
The seminar was divided into three sessions, the first being inaugural while in the other two parts scholarly papers were presented by noted historians, teachers and journalists like Prof. Mohammad Azizuddin Hussain and Dr. Rizwan Qaiser of Jamia Millia Islamia and Mohammad Sajjad of Aligarh Muslim University.
Young Urdu scholar and journalist Dr. Hasan Mosanna also presented his scholarly paper on the Role of Urdu Press in the first war of Indian Independence, 1857.
Mr. Shahid Mehdi, vice president of Indian Council for Cultural Relations and former vice chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia noted that this seminar would help in understanding the role of Urdu Press which has played very significant role during the freedom struggle.
Urdu press is still contributing significantly, he added.
Meanwhile, M. S. Shakeeb, Cultural Councilor of Iran Culture House, New Delhi, called Maulvi Mohammad Baqar a real hero who laid down his life for the love of his country India and her freedom.
Shakeeb said every country and nation needs to have heroes and epics and those who do not have their real heroes create one as heroes and epics are soul of the nations.
Citing the example of United States of America, he said that the country doesn’t have long history neither the people had their own real historic hero. That’s why they have created their own heroes like Superman, Batman and Spiderman.
The Iranian diplomat urged the Indian people to remember and commemorate their heroes.
Noting that Maulvi Mohammad Baqar’s ancestors migrated to India from the Iranian city of Hamedan, he said that it’s a matter of pride that people with their ancestral roots in Iran have fought against the imperial rule. Maulvi Baqar is one of the examples of deep rooted historical and cultural ties between India and Iran, he added.
He also emphasized the need for preserving these valuable relationship.