Roti, Kapra and Makaan
Random thoughts
by Dr A Q Khan
Roti, kapra and makaan is the slogan of one of our major political parties. It played a big role in their majority win in the 1970 elections in West Pakistan. We, as a naïve nation, swallow all kinds of hollow slogans and promises. This slogan has its roots in India where it became so popular that Manoj Kumar made it the title of one of his films. This film was so successful that it celebrated its golden jubilee. The communists in India were the first to realise the appeal of these “magic” words and soon West Bengal became its stronghold. It appealed to many in Pakistan because it promised the poor a means of subsistence. These three items – roti, kapra and makaan – are the basic essential needs of the poor. Politicians soon realised the importance and appeal of these words and made it a part of their party manifesto. Since it contained a promise to meet the needs of the poor, the party managed to win votes. Like so many other promises, this one saw the light of day, but days, weeks, even years, passed without its realisation. Meanwhile, the poor became poorer and the rich became richer.
In Bhopal there was a cobbler known as Jagjeewan Ram. He rose to become India’s deputy prime minister and minister of defence. (His daughter, Mira Kumari, is now speaker of the Lower House.) He later became so rich that when a parliamentarian asked him why his son, Suresh Bhai, had not paid Rs240-million income tax, he casually replied that Suresh might have forgotten about it. If Rs240 million means nothing, one may well image his wealth!
Similar miracles have taken place in our country. Leaders from poor backgrounds have become billionaires, almost overnight, owning foreign currency accounts and properties abroad. The common people are not clueless. They know all about it but look on helplessly, unable to utter a word for fear of repercussions.
When the slogan was made part of one party’s manifesto, we saw it written everywhere. Roti is the first important item of the three. Its simple meaning is bread, but in a wider sense it encompasses all edibles – grain, vegetables, oil, ghee, meat, sugar, etc.
Allama Iqbal (RA) who was miles away from communism in his convictions, could not resist saying:
Jis khet se dehqan ko mayassar nahin roti;
Us khet ke har khosha-e gandum ko jalado.
Even the staunchest supporters of socialism would hesitate to utter such words.
Raja Mehdi Ali Khan said in his famous verse:
Diwana admi ko banati hain rotian;
Khud nachti hain sabko nachati hain rotian.
A common joke circulating at the time of the popularity of this slogan was that someone asked Mr Bhutto how much two plus two was. Came the prompt reply – four rotian.
Moeen Ahsan Jazbi of Bhopal, upon the insistence of Jigar, often recited this verse:
Jab jeb men paise hotey hain, jab pet men roti hoti hai;
Us waqt yeh zarra heera hai, us waqt yeh shabnam moti hai.
He used to taunt Josh that this was also a form of socialism.
In the olden days the well-to-do provided free food to the poor. Fortunately, many people still maintain this custom as it is considered to be a good deed for which one receives the blessings of Allah Almighty.
During the regime of Gen Musharraf the country suffered wheat/flour shortages because Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz had allowed the export of wheat at cheap rates. It then had to be imported at much higher rates. The present government has managed to put even the previous government to shame. We see not only a shortage of wheat, but also of sugar and other edibles, as well as exorbitant price hikes of almost all commodities, putting many items beyond the means of the common man. As if that were not enough, increased rates and long hours of load shedding make electricity nothing more than a dream for many. We have not forgotten the scenes of poor men, women and children being beaten with shoes, sticks and fists while trying to buy (not loot) sugar and flour in the scorching heat during Ramazan. Some even died.
The second item in the slogan is cloth, encompassing all clothing. In ancient times people used large leaves. Later on, they made clothing from hides and, with the advent of handlooms, they started using woven cloth. In present times we see this trend culminating in large textile mills. Sahir Luthianwi had this to say:
Milen isi liye resham ka dher banti hain
Ke dukhtaran-e-watan taar-taar ko tarsen.
Nowadays, with rampant consumerism, the rich have too many clothes and the poor have hardly enough to cover themselves with. Thanks to the Lunda Bazars, poor people can now buy imported second-hand clothing of reasonable quality to mitigate the hardships of winter. Perhaps the day will come when even that is beyond their means and they will once again resort to natural products, as in the following verse:
Tan ki uriyani se behter hi nahin koi libas
Yeh wo jamah hai nahin jis ka kuchh ulta-sidha.
Even in death we need a piece of cloth:
Jaey ga jab yahan se kuchh bhi pas na hoga;
Do gaz kafan ka tukra tera libas hoga.
Rather than hollow slogans and utilising the names (reputations) of past leaders, the current rulers should take appropriate practical measures to alleviate the suffering of the poor who are in a bad state due to unemployment, load shedding and the high cost of living.
Last, but definitely not least, is the important issue of having a place to live, whether it be hut, house, villa or palace. For the poor the bare essential is to have a roof over their heads. For them it is a never-ending struggle. Many poets have called the sky “the blue canopy” and depicted it as harsh. However, the poet, Atish Lakhnavi, who called it a blessing for the poor, has this to say:
Khuda daraz kare umr charkh-e nili ki
Ke ham aseerun ki turbat pe shamiana hua.
While he meant it as a shade, a canopy, on the grave, nowadays it is all that many poor people have under which to sleep.
Futpath pe sojate hain akhbar bichcha kar
Mazdur kabhi neend ki goli nahin khatey.
Despite progress, modernisation and available facilities, many people are still found spending nights under most uncomfortable circumstances. The poor are poorer than before and have less food, clothing or shelter than the so-called developed age warrants. Think of the periods of Hazrat Umar (RA) and Hazrat Umar bin Abdul Aziz (RA). At that time there were no poor people and no beggars living off zakat. There were no aeroplanes, large ships, railways, cars, trucks, telephones, mobile phones, computers, fax machines, etc., but the quality of life was far better. People from Madina to Samarkand and in North Africa were taken care of and peace and security reigned.
The reason may be sought in the fact that the rulers were God-fearing, humble people who prayed to Allah Almighty to guide them on the right path. Nowadays, rulers live in palaces and have lost touch with the common man. They hold extravagant dinners and travel abroad frequently, all costing huge amounts to the national exchequer, rather than utilising these funds for developmental purposes. They seem to have forgotten the saying that those who build palaces don’t have long to live in them. The old slogan of roti, kapra, makaan has been replaced by a new slogan – juta, lathi and thappar.
