Free Mason Hall
Free Mason Hall Karachi before the partition, also known as Hope Lodge. All the programs of the society were held in it. Where there was a lot of hustle and bustle in the evening, there were rows of white Victorian cars in front of the building. At that time they had 500 members. Some of these notable names were Jam Mir Ayub Alamani, a big name in Karachi politically, socially, literary and culturally.
The building is viewed with suspicion after the partition. Freemasonry is a well-thought-out Jewish organization. Which is financially supported by the Jews. And the symbol of the Jews is the Star of David, the eight-pointed star.
Well-known researcher Akhtar Baloch says that the reality before partition was somewhat different and it is also a fact that Muslims were included in these organizations before and after the formation of Pakistan. The fact that Jews now have the Star of David and the Freemason's logo is part of the same propaganda. There is a difference between the two signs. The Freemason Hall logo and the Star of David are separate symbols.
How many buildings and graves of Jews can be seen in Star of David Karachi. The first such thing came to light in 1972 Freemasonry activities were restricted under Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Later, on July 18, 1973, the Bhutto government took control of the "Free Mason Hall" He took possession of the entire record. On July 19, Dawn reported that the Sindh government, led by the area magistrate, had sealed off the local hall near the YMC and seized the record. Hall took over at the behest of a rebel group. The general impression is that Freemasonry is a Jewish organization. And that is against Islamic ideology. They have 1750 members all over Pakistan. Of these, 700 are members of the Karachi headquarters. According to reports, there are Free Mason Lodge Halls in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Lahore, Multan, Rawalpindi, Tarbela, Quetta and Peshawar. After capturing the Freemason Hall record, no one knows where it is now The Free Mason Hall in Lahore was founded in 1860. This hall is known as "Lahore Temple". The building is now in the hands of the Punjab government. Where offices of various government departments have been set up. Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Sheikh was the last Past Master of Freemason Lodge Hall Karachi. He was taken over by Dr. RB Kabhata in May 1973.
It may be recalled that when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto restricted the activities of Free Mason Hall in 1972, his activities continued in spite of him. Earlier, in 1961, the Pakistani government and members of the Pakistani forces banned him from being a member of the Free Mason Rotary Club and the Lions Club. The same ban was imposed on other government employees in 1969. When Zia-ul-Haq banned the activities of the Freemasons on June 17, 1983, under the Marshall Law, Regulation 56, his activities continued. Because the order did not specify legal or illegal activities. Therefore, according to the members, they were carrying out legal activities. With this in mind, the Government declared the Martial Law Regulation of 17 June 1983 by the Martial Law Administrator on 29 December 1985. Under the order, the Freemasons were banned. Under section (5), this decision cannot be challenged in any court. And the person who obstructs the order under section (7) shall be punished severely with imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years and with fine.
The Freemasons were banned in Iran after the 1979 revolution. Thus, in only two countries in the world, Pakistan and Iran, the Free Mason organization has the Hope Lodge in the early 1990s and the Wildlife Accounts and Head Office at the Sindh Wildlife Time Freemason Lodge Hall. Where the Sindh government building was made a national heritage, renovation and decoration under the 1994 Act. The building and hall are still in good condition. Where there are commemorative plaques. A plaque commemorates the Freemason Roberts Shepherd of Karachi. Apart from these ten boards, only these boards are left for the students of Free Mason Hall.
Current look
Judaism is one of the oldest religions in the world. Before Islam, there were three tribes of Jews living in Madinah, of which the Banu Nadir, Banu Qainqa and Banu Qurayzah are the most important. Prior to the formation of Pakistan, there were a large number of Jews (Israelites) living in United India, especially in Bombay, Karachi, Gujarat (India), and also in the Pakistani cities of Multan, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. Families were settled. Who later emigrated to Israel and other countries.
Research
Aitken's Sindh Gazetteer, published in 1907, writes about the Jewish population of Karachi that according to the 1901 census, their number is only 1300. Most of them live in Karachi. Most belong to the Israelite community. And it is believed that they settled in Karachi from Maharashtra. Not much can be said about the history of the Jews in United India, but you can guess from the fact that the general election was held in India in 1936 in which "Abraham Rubin" won the election for councilor in Karachi. Yes, it could mean that the number of Jews at that time was such that they had a councilor or that they would have very good relations with other religions. Abraham Rubin was also an official of the Jewish organization, the Israelite Association, which was added to Pakistan after the partition of India. The organization is thought to have been founded in 1893. In the 19th century, many organizations were formed to protect the Jewish community, with the aim of protecting the rights of Jews and promoting Judaism. They also provided affordable housing to their community and provided financial support. These organizations were funded by Jews around the world. Young Jews were prominent in these organizations. The Young Man Jewish Association and the Karachi Bani Israel Relief Fund are more important among these organizations. By 1911, 0.3% of Karachi's population was Jewish. After the creation of Israel, where Jews migrated from all over the world, many Jews from Pakistan also migrated to Israel, some to England, but the Arab-Israeli war made up for the shortfall. It has become difficult to live in Pakistan, as we all know how much hatred there is for Israel in Pakistan. There were also many Jews who hid their identities and did not reveal their identities by calling themselves Christians or Parsis. The inscription in Karachi's Frere Hall names the Jews who founded an organization called "Free Mason" in Pakistan, which was later banned after the establishment of Pakistan.
Bani Israel Mosque in Karachi
A Jewish religious shrine called the "Star of the Church of Peace" was located on Col. Jamil Street, Nishat Road, Karachi. The church was founded by Solomon David in 1893. Then in 1912 further expansion was made by Solomon's daughters, Gershon Solomon and Raheem Solomon. A Hebrew school was also established within the church by the Jewish community in 1916-1918. Nathan Ibrahim Hall was also established here in 1918. There is also a signboard with the words "Pakistan Bani Israel Association" written on it. There is also a mosque here called Bani Israel Mosque. Its entrance reads, "Only Jews are allowed to enter here." There was an Israeli mosque building in the main square of the Ranchhor Lines area of Karachi, which has now been converted into a multi-storey residential building called "Madiha Square". Even today, the old people of Karachi know it as an Israeli or Jewish mosque. An old resident of the area, Qazi Khidr Habib, says the last trustee of the Israel Trust was a woman named Rachel Joseph, who named the building after a man named Ahmed Elahi, son of Mehr Elahi, a power of attorney. They agreed to build a commercial building on the site of the shrine. Shops will be built on the ground floor of the building while a shrine will be built on the first floor. There were shops on the ground floor and a place of worship on the first floor. But now there are residential flats instead of places of worship. There was also a lawsuit between "Rachel Joseph" and various individuals over the ownership of the trust, in which "Rachel" and his attorney won. Rachel's presence in Karachi is said to have moved her to London a long time ago. On May 6, 2007, Reema Abbasi, a columnist for Rozna Mehdan, wrote that the last custodian of the place, Rachel Joseph, was in Karachi until 2007, when she moved to London.
Jews of Hyderabad
The general impression about the Jews is that they were confined to Karachi, but an inscription in the Jewish cemetery proves that they served in other cities of Sindh besides Karachi. There is also a tomb of Dr. Elizabeth Jacob Bhurapkar, who served in the Civil Hospital, Hyderabad, who was born in 1850 and died in 1922. Similarly, a grave has been made by Abraham Reuben Kumar, the vice president of the Jewish community in Karachi.
Jews of Multan
According to Altaf Ahmed, Director Media Relations of the Election Commission of Pakistan, the number of Jewish voters in Pakistan was 809 in the last national elections held in 2013. And there were 12 Jews in Multan who identified themselves as Parsis. According to these figures, the disappearance of hundreds of Jewish voters in five years is a rare occurrence. Where did the Jewish voters go?
Jews of Peshawar
Peshawar also had a Jewish community in the 1960s and had two places of worship. As of 2017, there were 900 Jewish voters registered, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan. At present, as many Jews as there are in Pakistan are hiding their identities. Jews call themselves Parsis or Christians, so it is not possible to know their true numbers.
Jews of Rawalpindi
Deutsche Welle, a reporter for the English broadcaster DW, wrote in a report on Jews in Rawalpindi that it was difficult to identify Jews in Rawalpindi. Only one of the Pakistani Jews contacted by Deutsche Welle was a senior citizen. He agreed to be interviewed on condition of anonymity. This elderly Jewish citizen of Pakistan is a good year old and lives in an old and densely populated area of Rawalpindi. "There was a time when even about thirty years ago, there were about forty-five Jewish families living in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Gujranwala," he said. Many Jewish families, including my own, have migrated to Europe, the United States or South Africa. At least six Jewish families have relocated to Karachi, ”he said.“ Until the 1970s, there were two synagogues in Rawalpindi. But despite the fact that a few Jewish families lived in the city, these places of worship were closed because our religious leaders, the rabbis, were not available. Jews stopped registering as voters because it is now a viable option for a Jew to run for office in a particular seat and to go and vote for such a candidate as a voter in an age of sectarianism and extremism. No, ”said the Pakistani minority, who has spent most of his life in a neighborhood in Rawalpindi, explaining to DW why local Jews have little interest in politics. Similarly, he has never been politically active. But due to the instability of the democracy that was restored after the dictatorship of Zia-ul-Haq and the lack of interest of almost all political parties in the local Jews, our own interest in politics has almost disappeared. The last time I cast my vote was in the 1990 general election. After that, the desire to participate in the election as a voter disappeared.
Karachi Jewish Israel Cemetery
There are graves of Jews (Israelis) in Mewa Shah Cemetery in Karachi. And an estimated 5,000 Jews are buried here. About five hundred graves have been identified. The Hebrew language written on the books is now the only sign that the Jews are buried here. The last burial in the Israelite cemetery was in the 1980s, after which no Jew is reported to have been buried here. Solomon David was a surveyor in the Karachi Municipality in the British era. Solomon died in 1902 and his wife died the following year. Both spouses were buried in the same cemetery. In 1912, Solomon David's two sons redesigned his books. The cemetery is overgrown with bushes and plants, and criminals often hide from law enforcement due to a lack of government attention. The cemetery is being looked after by a Baloch family, who have been its watchmen for six generations. According to him, some Jews used to come here and pay for their maintenance, but now for years no one has come here, only newspaper correspondents and researchers come and take pictures and leave. This monument to Judaism in Karachi has fallen into disrepair due to lack of proper maintenance. Most Jewish graves have been demolished and the resettlement of Muslim dead is in full swing.
Israeli Jew from Karachi
Regarding the presence of Jews in Karachi, Mahmooda Rizvia writes on page 146 of her book Queen of the East that Jews live in the Lawrence Quarter. Employees are called Israelites by profession and common usage. The victims separate themselves. There is a temple and a cemetery. Their population is very small. Educated and very happy. Well known writer and journalist Muhammad Hanif who fortunately visited Israel. At the moment, the international broadcaster affiliated with the BBC writes about an event during his visit to Israel that at last one of the moderators realized that I had not given a speech. I was taken by the hand and made to stand on the stage. I said that I am not from India but from Karachi. That's how I came home from work. But I was very happy to meet you guys and so on and so forth. A forty-five-year-old man of fair complexion and fat body, sitting in the front row, sobbed loudly. When I got off the stage, he came and grabbed my hand, took me to a corner and hugged me. This was Daniel of Soldier Bazaar Karachi. "I haven't seen anyone from Karachi since 68" He told me between sobs: "I went to an English medium school there. We had our own mosque. During the war of 1967, Ayub Khan sent police to protect it." Then he put his hand on his heart and said, "We were not in trouble there. We were never abused. We just saw that all the Jews were going to Israel, so we came too."
Pakistan was formed in 1947 and Israel in 1948 and this is where the bad days of these Jews began. Then whenever the Arabs fought Israel, the land became narrow for the Jews of Sindh. In the Arab-Israeli wars of 1956 and 1967, Pakistani extremist Muslims kept Pakistani Jews alive. Even in 1968, there were only 250 Jews left in Sindh, which used to be three or four thousand. Jews were forced to leave Pakistan and seek refuge in England or Israel.
The remaining surviving Jews, disguised as Parsis, somehow managed to populate Karachi's Megan Shalom Snigag and the Jewish cemetery. The misfortune of Pakistan that then came the era of Zia-ul-Haq, it was the double misfortune of Pakistani Jews, people fell on each other while chanting slogans of jihad, when Deobandi, Barelvi, Ahle Hadith and Shia killed each other by declaring each other as infidels. How can Jews survive in such a situation? Some extremist Muslims, together with the Occupy Mafia, attacked the synagogue, the Jews escaped, and valuables were stolen. Twelve years ago today, there were about ten Jewish families in Karachi. But that number has dwindled, with Jewish property grabbing mafias and locals building residential buildings and commercial complexes.