Birth anniversary of Fatima Jinnah

The 115th birth anniversary of Madar-e-Millat (Mother of the Nation.) Fatima Jinnah was celebrated on Thursday 31st July whereas no important event was held either by the government or by the educational institutions to mark the occasion.

The movement of women would not have been at this stage if Begum Salma Tassduq Hussain, Begum Shahnawaz and Fatima Jinnah had not spearheaded the movement. The information about her should be included in the curriculum and the anniversaries of such personalities should be celebrated with enthusiastically so that the young generation can be made aware of their services for the nation, he believed.Fatima Jinnah (1893-1967), the sister of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, was an active political figure in movement for independence from the British Raj. Born in Karachi, she was admitted to the Dr R. Ahmed Dental College in the University of Calcutta in 1919 and went to open her dental clinic in Bombay in 1923.She was an instrumental figure in the Pakistan Movement and the primary organiser of All India Muslim Women Students Federation.

After the formation of Pakistan and the death of her brother, she remained an active member of the nation’s politics. In 1965, Miss Fatima Jinnah ran for President as a candidate of the Combined Opposition Party (COP); widely believed to win the election, her loss came as a shock to the world community. She continued to work for the welfare of the Pakistani people until she died in Karachi on July 8, 1967.During the transfer of power in 1947, she was an inspiration to Muslim women. She formed the Women’s relief committee, which later formed the nucleus for the All Pakistan Women’s Association. She also played a significant role in the settlement of refugees in the new state of Pakistan.