What Jinnah said in that speech given at Dhaka University

Just seven months after the end of British rule and the partition of India, the then Governor General of Pakistan, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, set foot in Dhaka on March 19, 1948. It was his first and last visit to East Pakistan. Jinnah was suffering from various physical complications, including tuberculosis. He died within six months of arriving in Dhaka.

During that ten-day visit, the founder of Pakistan attended various events in Dhaka and Chittagong. During that time, he also delivered speeches at several places. Among them, the speeches given at the then Race Course Maidan in Dhaka and the convocation ceremony of Dhaka University are particularly discussed. When Jinnah announced that Urdu would be the state language of Pakistan at these events, he faced strong protests from students.

The Bengali translation of Jinnah's speech is given below: 

Ladies and gentlemen, when your Vice-Chancellor came to me and requested me to deliver a convocation address, I clearly told him that due to my various commitments it might not be possible to prepare a formal address for the convocation; which is in keeping with the various great subjects of this university such as art history, philosophy, science, law and nature. However, I had promised that I would say two things in front of the students on the occasion of the convocation and what I am going to say now can be said to be the fulfillment of this promise. First of all, I would like to thank the Vice-Chancellor for naming me with various flattering adjectives.   

Mr. Vice-Chancellor. Whatever I am doing now or whatever I have been able to do, it was almost all my duty. As a Muslim, it is my duty to serve the people of the country with honesty and selflessness. When I say these words to you, I am not saying them as the Head of State but as a friend who always holds you in his affection. Many have obtained their diplomas and degrees today. I congratulate them. You have snatched the jewels from the university to prove yourself worthy. 

I wish you success in whatever you are about to enter in the wider world. Many of you are at the end of your educational career and at the peak of your life. You are fortunate to be able to leave the university of your own independent sovereign country, which your ancestors could not. It is very important for you and the future students to understand the epoch-making changes that have been initiated due to the birth of the state of Pakistan. We have broken the chains of subjugation and now we are free people. Our country is our own.

Our government is solely our own. We are working for the people, for the people, for the development of the state. However, freedom does not mean getting a license, it does not mean that you can do whatever you want. You will behave as you like without thinking about what the state thinks. You have a lot of responsibility. In other words, more than at other times. We have to work as a united and disciplined nation. We need more development power now than the military power that was needed when we achieved independence. 

It is more difficult to build it than to use military force to achieve independence. It is easier to go to jail or fight for independence than to run a government. Rather, let me tell you two things about the dangers we have overcome and the few difficulties that are coming our way. In order to satisfy their insatiable desire to prevent the birth of Pakistan, the enemies are now looking for ways to weaken and destroy us. That is why, as soon as the government came to power, there was a massive massacre in Punjab and Delhi. Thousands of men, women and children were slaughtered and millions were displaced. In just one week, five million such people arrived in Punjab.

The problems that are arising in the care and rehabilitation of these unfortunate migrants, both physically and mentally, could have brought down any great nation. But those who wanted to kill the birth of Pakistan in its infancy have been disappointed. Pakistan has not only overcome that disaster. Rather, it has emerged stronger, more elegant and better equipped than ever before. Coupled with this are other problems such as India's retaliatory treatment of our surplus and military equipment and, most recently, the imposition of a complete economic blockade on your province. I have no doubt that the well-meaning people of the Indian province do not support these events and those who are causing them will also change their minds. 

Still, it is very important for you to have an idea about these matters. They are insisting on keeping a close watch on our part. Especially recently, the attack on your province has taken a mysterious form. It is very sad to say that there are some Muslims among our enemies. They are vigorously campaigning for provincialism so that Pakistan will weaken and become united with the Indian hegemony as before. Those who think this are living in a fool's paradise, although that does not stop them from trying. Every day a bunch of false and fabricated issues are being created to show that there is no harmony among Muslims and to incite them to do illegal activities. Take the recent language controversy; I am very sad to say that many of you have fallen into the trap of provincialism.  

Does it never occur to you that the newspapers of the provinces, for whom Pakistan is just a curse, are coming to teach you your rights regarding language? Doesn't it seem that the same people who cheated Muslims or fought against Pakistan in the past are suddenly emerging as your benefactors regarding language. They are teaching you to be aware of your rights and stand up against the government. Beware of these fifth columnists. 

Let me explain my view on the state language of Pakistan once again. The people of this province can choose any language they want for official use in this province. There is no disagreement on this. 

The people of the country will choose the language of their choice at a certain time through their elected representatives. However, the lingua franca, that is, the language used for internal communication between the different provinces, will definitely be Urdu and nothing else. So the state language will be Urdu and of course Urdu, which is a language that has grown in every corner of Pakistan under the close care of millions of Muslims of the subcontinent. A language that people can understand better than any other provincial language. It is in harmony with the culture and tradition of the Muslims and is fairly close to the languages ​​of other Islamic countries. The distribution of Urdu from the Indian Union and even the exclusion of Urdu from official use did not happen without a reason. Those who want to open the water by creating a debate on language are not unaware of this. There is no way to avoid admitting this problem. Although they will not admit it.

Because it is not in line with their desires. The only reason for their language controversy is to create division among Muslims and incite hatred towards non-Bengali Muslims. However, in the language controversy, your Prime Minister has clearly stated after returning from Karachi that Bengalis can make Bengali the official language if they wish. They have changed their plan of action. Now they want to make Bengali the state language of the whole of Pakistan and they are ignoring the demand of Urdu as the state language of another Muslim state. They are saying, to make both Bengali and Urdu the state languages. You should not make a mistake in this regard. In the interest of the unity of the state, there can be only one state language and in my opinion it is Urdu. I have discussed this issue a lot with our enemies and some opportunistic politicians. So I am warning you.

Those of you who are going to walk the broad path of life should keep yourselves away from these people. Those who will continue their studies for a few more days should avoid the selfish politicians. 

Don't let yourself be a sacrifice. As I said the other day, for ourselves, for our parents, for the country, you should concentrate on your studies completely. Only in this way can you equip yourself for the future life battle. Only in this way can you develop yourself into the wealth, strength and pride of the country. 

Only in this way will the country be able to build a developed and strong nation in the world by solving the various problems ahead. Young friends, for this reason I will shed light on some things that you should always be careful about. First, we should be careful about the interim fifth columnists. Second, we should be extremely careful about all selfish people and root them out. Because they will want to use you for their own interests. Third, we should recognize and support the truly honest and charitable government employees who want to work for the people with all their might. Fourth, we should build the Muslim League more strongly because they will truly build a great Pakistan. Fifthly, it is this Muslim League that founded Pakistan and now it is the responsibility of a Muslim League to be the guardian of that sacred responsibility of building Pakistan. Sixthly, there are many who did not cooperate with us at all during our struggle and even worked against us and openly created obstacles in the path of our great struggle and the number of these collaborators of the enemy is not at all insufficient.

They may now come before us with their flashy slogans, slogans, ideology and programme. But they must prove their loyalty or the real change in their inner thoughts. And the truth of this will be found in those who, at this terrible juncture, do not form their own umbrella party but join the Muslim League with our views and beliefs and support this party. At a time when we are facing various external and internal dangers with which the fate of seven crore people is linked, complete solidarity, unity and discipline are needed. I assure you that there is another matter that rises in unity and falls in division, which I would like to throw light on.

Young friends, till now you have been following the traditional method of getting a degree. When you come out of thousands of universities with your degrees, you have only one thought and desire. And that is a government job. Your Vice Chancellor has rightly said that the old and traditional method of education today is to produce well-trained and well-equipped clerks. 

Of course, some of them rose to high positions, but the whole system was to produce skilled clerks. The civil service was mainly filled by British personnel, later Indians started joining it and this trend continued. The overall objective was to create a mentality that a common man would look for a government job after completing his BA or MA. If he got it, he would think that he had reached his highest heights. We all know what the real result was. In my experience, an MA graduate earns less than a taxi driver and most of the so-called government employees live in misery compared to those employed in well-off families. 

Now I want you to come out of that conventional culture and mentality. Because we are now residents of free Pakistan. It is impossible for the government to provide jobs to thousands. But in this competition for government jobs, most of you become helpless. The government can provide jobs only to a limited number of people and those who are left cannot settle for anything. And these frustrated people easily become victims of selfish prohibitions. I want you to direct your mind and purpose in such a way. In those fields which are open to you and will be more open in the future. 

There is no shame in doing manual labor. There are also many opportunities in technical education because we need skilled people with technical knowledge. You can learn about finance and banking, commerce, law, etc., which are currently creating immense opportunities. You already know that new factories, banks, insurance companies, commercial firms are being established and as they grow with time, these are the only paths open to you. Think about these and direct your attention towards them. Believe me, this way you will benefit much more than government jobs. You will be much happier. Because with many more opportunities, you can progress much more if you join commercial institutions and factories. And in this way you can help yourself as well as the state.  

I can give you an example. I know a young man who was in a government job. Four years ago he joined a banking corporation for Rs. 200. Because he studied banking. Today he is the manager of a firm in that corporation and after only four years he is now earning Rs. 1500 per month. These opportunities have to be used honestly and I will be really happy with you if you think about these things.

Finally, I thank the Chancellor. And especially the Vice Chancellor. For giving me a warm welcome and for those words of praise. It is not my hope but my long-held belief that the youth of East Bengal will not disappoint me.