Qazi Ahmad Naeem Qureshi,was a manifestation of the spirit of the historic student movement, which started from the plate of the National Students Federation, a revolutionary organization of students confronting the 10-year military dictatorship of General Ayub Khan in Pakistan in 1968.
He died on December 3, 2022 in the city of Rawalpindi, Pakistan. It is a an irreparable loss of the progressive movement of Pakistan that an enlightened and true revolutionary like Qazi Ahmad Naeem Qureshi is no longer among us today.He was buried on December 3, 2022 in the presence of thousands of mourners.
He played a major part in shaping the political training of Pakistani youth, students and workers. He was an advocate by profession. He began his voyage from 1968 under the leadership of Tufail Abbas, the well-known communist leader of Pakistan, and he continued this journey till the last breath of his life.
He was revolutionary to the core. Comrade Tufail Abbas died in 2019. He was the chairman of Pakistan Mazdoor Mahaz, a revolutionary party of workers of Pakistan. After his death, Qazi Ahmad Qureshi was elected as the chairman of Pakistan Mazdoor Mahaz.
A joint meeting was held of the United Labour Federation and Pakistan Labour Front, labour leaders said Pakistan Electronics Limited (PEL) from Lapur along with the leadership of Factory Management Pocket CBA Union, 15 and 20 year old workers also without graduation and their cauldron. Violating legal privileges, forcing them to put thumbs on plain paper and dismissing them from their jobs by giving them only two to two months salary. PEL administration has so far retrenched more than 500 workers illegally, which is a violation of labour laws nationwide. But till now the labour department has not undertaken any action against the law-breaking factory machinery which is condemnable. The labour leaders have strongly condemned the PEL administration and PEL’s tout CBA union’s anti-labour actions.
Labour leaders said 350 EOBI officers who were recruited into EOBI without merit by the former government and later dismissed were re instated by the high court and supreme court. This was robbery of the EOI old pensioner’s fund.
Labour leaders demanded that the federal government employees who retaliated and reinstated by the Supreme Court should immediately follow court orders. Restore the ko to their jobs.
Labour leaders said the reforms of the Central Government in formulating the Profit Participation Fund of the Workers are in no way acceptable to the hardworking Pakistan peole They asserted that the government continued the distribution of the fund under the same formula and the government should not do any experimentation in this regard, which caused grievances in the labour class.
Employer Federation of Pakistan has challenged the policy of receiving EOBI contribution of workers at least Rs. 25,000 monthly salary.
Labour leaders said such measures by employer create antagonism of labourers affect employer-employee relations. He said if the Employers Federation decides to submit EOBI contribution of Rs 25000 per month and obtains stay from the courts against the policy; the labour class will protest it in the courts.
The participants of the meeting expressed their deep sorrow over the death of Pakistan Labor Front Chairman Qazi Ahmad Naeem Qureshi and said that Naeem Quraishi’s association with the labourers began as a student. He had been working laboriously for a prolonged period of 55 years. Struggled to organize and fight for their rights. With his death, the hard-working Pakistanis have lost a friend and leader who relentlessly waged their legal battle for the revolutionary and working class. He also recited Fatiha for them. He died on December 3 in Rawalpindi.
The participants of the meeting also recited Fatiha for Malik Muhammad Hussain, a former labor leader of the package factory, appreciating his services in the labour movement.
Harsh Thakor is a freelance journalist who has done extensive research on revolutionary movements worldwide
