Has Karachi Arts Council Election Become Political?

It is said that the farther the distance between arts and politics better it is but the upcoming elections of Karachi Arts Council (KAC) have received stains of politics as leaders from different political parties have jumped in to support the panels ahead of the council’s election due next week.

Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani, who is a member of the KAC, shared a tweet on his official handle to extend support to Ahmed Shah and Ejaz Farooqi panel.

Support Ahmed Shah & Ejaz Farooqi Panel
⁦@ACPKHI⁩ elections pic.twitter.com/sRVS6KSlbm

— Senator Saeed Ghani (@SaeedGhani1) December 9, 2020

Ahmed Shah, who has had accusations of having no link with fine arts but serving as the KAC President for as many as 13 years, has had questions raised over his credibility as a sitting minister has come to support him.

Mutahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) leader Faisal Subzwari also revealed his support for the same panel.

News360 also learned that membership of Karachi Arts Council can be availed on self-finance too and the political leaders are beneficiaries of it.

However, the eminent painter Rafi Riaz came to Subwari’s Facebook post and questioned the affiliation of Ahmed Shah with arts.

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He commented that Ahmed Shah was far from association with any field of fine arts and that prominent literary figures were neglected for KAC’s presidency.

Structures of Karachi Arts Council and Lahore Al-Hamra Arts Council

Karachi Arts Council is run by an elected governing body that gets funds from the Sindh government. The audit is carried out by Sindh Auditor General (AG).

The council registered under the Registrar of Societies Act 1860 and its registration certificate was issued in May 1955.

Ahmed Shah is the president of KAC for the past 13 years and has entitled to get given credit for various activities such as the International Urdu Conference and other literary and arts programs.

The renowned writer Anwar Maqsood received a burst of laughter when he compared Ahmed Shah’s long tenure as the chairman with autocrat Ziaul Haq on the occasion of the 11th International Urdu Conference in 2018.

The writer sarcastically pointed out that Ahmed Shah organizes Urdu Conference just before elections every year and wins the hearts as well as the votes of KAC members to win another term.

When the structure of the Karachi Arts Council is compared with Al-Hamra Arts Council in Lahore, it is entirely different.

The latter works as an independent body that works under a board of governors (BOGs).

There are 11 private and six government members in the BoG while it is headed by the council’s executive director who gets the assistance of the deputy directors to run the affairs.

Punjab Chief Minister approves the names of the BOG members while the audit of the council’s expenditure is done by the provincial government.

Currently, Muniza Hashim, daughter of famous poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, is the chairperson of Al-Hamra’s BoG while other prominent members include Urdu poet, drama writer, and lyricist Amjad Islam Amjad and Journalist Sohail Waraich. All these people are somewhat connected with arts and there is no question over their impartiality.

What is required from Ahmed Shah?

Ahmed Shah has personally not refuted his political affiliation which he should as the person to occupy and contest for the seat he holds for must remain impartial and apolitical.