SOME noble souls leave such remarkable impressions that they continue to live in the hearts of millions of people even after their deaths. It is in fact their legacy and work for humanity that preserves their eminence and makes them mortal. One such personality is Hakeem Saeed whose 21st death anniversary was observed on Oct 17 — a month and date which not only reminded us of his immense contributions to the country in different fields especially health, education and herbal medicines but also how his cold blooded murder is still shrouded in mystery despite passage of two decades.
Hakim Saeed who possessed a multidimensional personality was a man of diverse capabilities. He was a physician, scholar, philanthropist, author, herbalist, educationist, Hafiz-i-Quran and a patriot. He served humanity and this country with utmost enthusiasm and devotion. He contributed to the progress and advancement of the country without asking for anything in return. In 1953, he declared Hamdard, a trust to propagate education and science in the society. The revenue generated from this trust is entirely spent on promotion of education and all the institutes of Hamdard Foundation like university, college, school, library, research centre etc. His biggest legacy is ‘Madinat-ul-Hikmat’ (City of knowledge and wisdom), a city that comprises of Bait-ul-Hikmat, Hamdard University and many other institutions. To illuminate minds of younger generation, he launched a magazine, ‘Hamdard Naunehal’ and established a separate division, ‘Naunehal Adab’ for producing quality books for children. Another of his remarkable feat was recognition of Alternative Medicine by World Health Organisation. He was a prolific writer and authored and edited more than 189 books both in English and Urdu languages. Due to outstanding contributions and illustrious services for humanity, he was not only appreciated in Pakistan but all over the world.
But like many other patriots, he was also silenced for his goodness. What is really regrettable that his murder case like many other high profile personalities is still unresolved? Is this how responsible countries pay tribute to their heroes? We would urge PTI government to establish a high level commission to expose those elements responsible for the murder of Hakeem Saeed. At the same time we are confident that Hamdard Foundation will continue to follow Hakim Saeed’s vision, values, beliefs and all that which he stood for throughout his life. This will be the best tribute to him.
