Сахибзада Абдул Қайюм Хан: Британдық саясаткер және білім беруші

Political Agent of the British Indian Empire
the educationist and politician of Pashtun origin

Nawab Khan Bahadur Sahibzada Sir Abdul Qayyum Khan KCIE (12 December 1863 – 4 December 1937), hailing from Topi, Swabi District, British India (modern day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan) was an educationist and politician. Qayyum Khan helped Mortimer Durand during his negotiation of the Durand Line agreement with Afghanistan in 1893. Qayyum Khan became the first Chief Minister of the North West Frontier Province on 1 April 1937. His maternal family traces their lineage back to Husain ibn Ali. His paternal grandfather was Sahibzada Qutb e Alam (born 1800/01). His father was Sahibzada Abdur Rauf (born 1837/38). Abdur Rauf married his maternal cousin Zainab, daughter of Syed Amir (Kotha Mulla). The couple had four children; three daughters and one son. Two of the daughters died in childhood, while Khair un Nisa (born 1860) and Abdul Qayyum survived. His mother died when he was 3 years old and his father was assassinated by rivals when he was 10 years old. After the death of his father, he and his sister were brought to Kotha by their maternal uncle, Syed Ahmed Bacha. He studied at the local madrassah where his uncle was a teacher. He was a bright student and caught the attention of a visiting Christian missionary Reverend Hughes. Rev. Hughes used to come to Kotha for religious discussion and propagation and had befriended Abdul Qayyums' uncles. Sensing that his nephew had more potential, Syed Ahmed Bacha was eventually convinced by Hughes to send him to Peshawar for modern education. Abdul Qayyum was admitted to the Municipal Board Middle School, Peshawar City from where he passed his Vernacular school exam in 1880. He subsequently gained admission to Edwards Mission High School, where he passed his English middle school examination in 1883. He took the examination for Naib Tehsildar in September 1886 and passed on his first attempt.

Due to the non availability of a Naib Tehsildar post, he applied for training in Settlement Work. He eventually joined the Commissioner's Office and was employed as a Translator and Reader. In 1887, Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum was appointed Naib Tehsildar. During the expedition, Abdul Qayyum had the task of sending daily reports to the various government agencies. His work was highly commended and he was awarded a silver medal, 'Hazara 88'. He was sent to Sialkot in 1890 for settlement training. He subsequently held several administrative portfolios, i. e., Tehsildar, Chief Political Agent of Hazara, Revenue Assistant and Treasury Officer, Extra Assistant Commissioner, Superintendent of the Commissioner's Vernacular Office, Assistant Political Agent Khyber, 'Assistant Political Agent' of Chitral, and then of Khyber Agency and then promoted to Assistant Political Agent of Khyber, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), during the period 1891 to 1919.

A delegation from Islamia College, headed by the then Principal R. L. Holdsworth came to visit Abdul Qayyum at his residence in Topi on 3 December 1937. After seeing his guests off, while walking back home he became dizzy, vomited and was about to fall down, but was supported by those around him. He was sat down on a chair. He told his kinsmen that the life was ebbing out of his limbs on one side. He soon fell into a coma and died at around 1:30 AM the next morning. It was 3 December and also Eid. His funeral was held the same day at 4pm and was attended by the Governor of NWFP and many high ranking officials. The Eastern Times reported " He was incomparably the greatest man that the Province had ever produced.". After the death of Sir A. Qayyum, most of the members of his party (United Muslims Nationalist Party) joined the newly formed All India Muslim League, electing Sardar Aurang Zeb Khan as its party leader in the assembly.