Man is a mortal being however, those individuals who, through their efforts, work for the well-being of their relatives, friends, colleagues, acquaintances and society at large, are remembered for a long time, even after they depart to heavenly abodes.
Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman, the founder of Jang Group of Newspapers was one such man. During a journalistic career which ranged over more than five decades, he succeeded in registering his glorious contribution to almost all fields that he accosted in the course of his journalistic career.

The 18th death anniversary of Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman will be solemnly observed on 25th January 2010. Mir saheb started his mission during the early period of the Second World War (1939-1945) by launching his maiden newspaper Roznama Jang from Delhi, the capital of the then British India.

Mir saheb was like a collector who loved to gather journalistic gems and jewels around him. It started with learned men like Syed Mohammad Taqi, Yusuf Siddiqui, Shafi Aqeel and others. Mir saheb used to study a lot, keep in touch with almost all people of opinion, and researchers. He had a photogenic memory. Mir saheb used to guide and encourage his assistants and occasionally praise their contributions.

One learns from the cradle to the grave, and this scribe as a senior reporter of Daily Jang and columnist of Urdu pictorial weekly, Akhbar-e-Jehan and English magazine, The MAG had associations of a quarter of a century (from the mid 1960s to 1990) with Mir saheb in which I learnt hundreds of noble, and useful ideas from him.

Mir saheb was admired by a number of people, and his long list of admirers include celebrated poet, writer, traveller and former banker, Jamiluddin Aali who had once said that Mir saheb was the product of several special factors of his time, it was a very particular time in history, when Mir saheb started his mission. At that time the struggle by All India Muslim League for the creation of a separate homeland under the leadership of Father of Nation the Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was at its peak. The movement was opposed by the Indian National Congress led by Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and Sardar Walab Bhai Patel. At that time, Mir saheb’s contributions to the Pakistan Movement were simply commendable.

All his life, Mir saheb worked hard to achieve the level of perfection that he always wanted for his group of newspapers. Working about 16 hours daily, Mir saheb’s greatest quality was that he used to closely monitor all newspapers and magazines of Jang Group.
A self-made newspaper magnate, Mir saheb, ranked amongst the most successful newspaper entrepreneurs in Asia. In fact, former Information Minister in Pakistan’s London Embassy, Qutubuddin Aziz, had said that this founder of the most widely read Pakistani newspaper and magazines became a legend during his life time.

Mir saheb’s biggest and most remarkable achievement was that he used to keep himself in touch with all the latest developments, whether these were in the field of politics or technology. Therefore, when the capital of Pakistan was shifted from Karachi to Rawalpindi, Mir saheb started the publication of Jang from the interim capital also.

In October 1962, Mir saheb launched English evening Daily News from Karachi and in the early 1970s, Mir saheb stared the publication of Roznama Jang from London. Interestingly, the Roznama Jang is still the only newspaper which is simultaneously published from Asia and Europe. Prof Dr Nisar Ahmad Zuberi, veteran journalist Farhad Zaidi, present editor of Daily News S M Fazal who enjoys an almost 48 years long association with Jang Group, and senior journalist Yunus Riaz who served the Jang Group in various capacities, were always full of praises for Mir saheb.

Pre-partition Urdu journalism owed a lot to stalwarts like Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Maulana Mahboob Alam and Maulana Zafar Ali Khan, all of whom made lasting contributions in the field of journalism. However, after the partition of the Indian subcontinent in the August of 1947 till January 1992, Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman’s contribution to Urdu journalism has been incomparable and has been praised by Pakistanis both locally and abroad. In the words of Nisar Zuberi, Mir saheb ranks the undisputed “King of the Jang Empire”.

Mir saheb used to guide his editorial staff insisting that the Roznama Jang should publish every event as well as give different points of view of various segments of society, since his organisation neither supported nor opposed any party. During the period of the first dictator General Mohammad Ayub Khan till the third army ruler General Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq reign, Jang had to brave intimidation almost everyday. From Ayub to Zia-ul-Haq almost all the rulers and top bureaucrats were keen to pressurise Jang into toeing the officials’ line. In those difficult days, Jang had to walk on tightest rope without forgetting the duty that it owed its hundreds of thousands of readers.

It was only Mir saheb’s courage and balancing expertise that saved the most popular newspaper from the wrath of people like the Governor of West Pakistan, Nawab Amir Mohammad Khan of Kalabagh. This was made possible because of the editorials written by veteran journalist Syed Mohammad Taqi, who wrote many editorials with strange ability of non-committed excellence. Later Iftikhar Ahmad Adani and some others like him taunted such editorials saying “Agha Taqi key bagh mein kawwa halal tha.”
S M Fazal who enjoys five decades of experience said that Khalil-ur-Rahman had the ability to attract those who had a natural desire to serve the field of journalism. He named Shamim Ahmad, Khawaja Ibtisam Ahmad, Suleman Ahmad Minai, M T Bokhari, Zamir Niazi and Mohammad Ali Siddiqui and Wajid Shamsul Hasan, the first editors of Daily News, who assisted Mir saheb in bringing laurels for Jang Group.

One of Mir saheb’s unique traits was the fact that he had an excellent memory and he remembered the names of all his newspaper employees from the level of editor to naib qasids. Mir saheb strongly believed that the press workers and working journalists of his newspapers should be paid well so that able men and women with a talent for journalistic writing may be drawn to join the journalism fraternity of Pakistan. Journalist, writer, author and intellectual Farhad Zaidi quotes Mao Tse Tung, one of the greatest revolutionaries of the 20th century saying, “Saving a newspaper is like steering a ship caught in stormy waters”. It is the captain’s duty to see that the ship does not crash against the rocks or run aground. Mir saheb was practically the captain of Jang and captained his ship with remarkable acumen, great perseverance and spectacular capacity for hard work.
 God bless him—Ameen