New Delhi: Amid furore over pulling down Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s portrait from the Aligarh Muslim University, a building in Pakistan’s Karachi proudly displays its connection with Mahatma Gandhi.
At the Karachi Chamber of Commerce, which was built with material brought from the Indian city of Jodhpur, carries a foundation stone which states that it was laid by Mahatma Gandhi in July 1934. At the time, the representative body of the southern city’s business community was known as the Karachi Indian Merchants Association.
During a visit to Karachi last week, Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria posed with others for a selfie in front of the foundation stone, which is now encased in a glass frame, reported Hindustan Times.
Asked by reporters about the demand for removing Jinnah’s portrait at the AMU students’ union office, Bisaria called for respect for leaders of both sides.
“I don’t want to say much about what happened (at AMU) but I would say that we should respect leaders of both countries,” he told the assembled businessmen and traders.
On Wednesday, Aligarh Muslim University vice chancellor Tariq Mansoor dismissed the row over Jinnah portrait on the campus as a non-issue.
“Jinnah's portrait has been here since 1938. Jinnah's portrait is at many places, including Bombay High Court and Sabarmati Ashram. No one was worried about the portraits until now, I think it is a non-issue,” said Tariq Mansoor when asked if he will get the portrait removed.
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