In the beginning, Mohammad Ali Jinnah was not too sure that Pakistan was a viable option but slowly he realized that there was no other way to safeguard the interests of the Muslims in the Indian subcontinent.
He did not fear that the Muslims would be persecuted because of their religion but what was more evident to him was that unless there was a separate piece of land for the Muslims, they would be excluded from all advancement and the power would become vested in the close-knit structure of Hindu society.
This is why in March of 1940, Mohammad Ali Jinnah proposed that the Muslims should be given a separate nation carved out of areas that had Muslims in majority. A dream he and the Muslims of India, soon turned into a reality when in August 1947 we got the country we call our home, our Pakistan.
I was going to write a huge article on the life of this great leader but then I thought why not let the world know about his greatness. So I compiled the following quotes from various leaders of the world, historians and other eminent personalities, that describe the character and impact of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
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“Few individuals significantly alter the course of history. Fewer still modify the map of the world. Hardly anyone can be credited with creating a nation-state. Mohammad Ali Jinnah did all three” – Prof. Stanley Wolpert.
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“Although without Gandhi, Hindustan would still have gained independence and without Lenin and Mao, Russia and China would still have endured Communist revolution, without Jinnah there would have been no Pakistan in 1947.” – John Biggs-Davison.
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“Good Character and Good Politics were those secrets due to which Jinnah got success” – Nehru
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“I believe no power can buy Mr. Jinnah.” – Gandhi
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“Jinnah’s scheme of partition was good, (but) it would take at least 25 years to take shape. But great wars and great men shorten history, and Jinnah was such a man who could alter the history of a nation.” – Lord Lothian
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“Mr. Jinnah, was great as a lawyer, once great as a Congressman, great as a leader of Muslims, great as a world politician and diplomat, and greatest of all as a man of action, By Mr. Jinnah’s passing away, the world has lost one of the greatest statesmen and Pakistan its life-giver, philosopher and guide.” – Surat Chandra Bose from My Brother, biography by Fatima Jinnah.
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“Gandhi died by the hands of an assassin; Jinnah died by his devotion to Pakistan.” – Lord Pethick Lawrence from My Brother, biography by Fatima Jinnah.
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“Jinnah is one of the most extraordinary men in history.” – Jawaharlal Nehru
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“The greatest man he ever met.” – The Aga Khan
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“If Muslim League had 100 Gandhis and 200 Abdul Kalam Azad and Congress had only one Jinnah than India would have never divided”. – Vijay Laxmi Pandit
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“He set a great example to other statesmen to follow by his skill in negotiation, his integrity and his honesty.” -Gordon Johnson
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“Mr. Jinnah was the recipient of a devotion and loyalty seldom accord to any man.” – Harry S Truman, US President.
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“Jinnah is Incorruptible and brave.” – Gandhi in an interview with Louis Fischer
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“There is no man or woman living who imputes anything against his honor or his honesty. He was the most upright person that I know, but throughout it all, he never, as far as I know, for one moment, attempted to deceive anybody, as to what he was aiming at or as to the means he attempted to adopt to get it.” – Sir Patrick Spen, the last Chief Justice of united India
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“Muhammad Ali Jinnah is the only personality of India from whom whole nation has expectations.” – Allama Iqbal
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“If Jinnah was in Sikhs they would Worship him.” – Sardar Kartar Singh.
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“Jinnah, young, perfectly mannered, impressive looking, armed to the teeth with dialectics and insistent upon the whole of his scheme he would rather have nothing if he could not get the whole lot. Chelmsford tried to argue with him and was tied up into knots. Jinnah is a very clever man, and it is of course an outrage that such a man should have no chance of running the affairs of his own country.” – Secretary of State Montagu – 1918
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“Mr. Jinnah was one of the handsomest men I have ever seen; he combined the clear cut, almost Grecian features of the West with oriental grace and movement.” – Lord Wavell, Viceroy of India 1943 – 1947
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“Jinnah was a historic personality which takes birth once in a Century.” – Mussolini
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“Jinnah never made an agreement by bowing down to anyone but on equal basis.” – Lord Mountbatten
Looking at our beloved Quaid through the eyes of the world luminaries, we should be proud of his legacy. But just being proud is not enough, we should follow in his steps to make Pakistan the country he envisioned.
being student of history I m highly impressed by Jinnah shb dynamic personality and his devotion to pakk.
I’m an Indian Punjabi.I don’t know much about Mr.jinnah.As i read all these quotes,Any one like me will say he is great.
But as a refugee to INDIA,we allways cry out while remembering those seperation days.there were lots of deaths,lots of womens raped.whenever maah grandpa tell me about the Nation where he was born,where was his upbringing,His eyes never stay dry,there are tears in his eyes and he say in punjabi that “ptaa nhi kehde chandre ne saade toh saada mulk khoyaa ae”means idk who had taken our nation away.
I’m always fond of that land where our Guru Nanak Dev Ji is born(nankaana sahib).
Afterall both the nations are seperated now and living happily…………
Thank you,
Proud to be a representative of a nation that was created by this amazing person.
Quaid tujhe salam!
He saved some Muslims of Indian subcontinent according to his capacity and favour of political environment, but wished to save all Muslims of India (geographical then India ) but could not do. How much was written by God only that was done. But above all, not protected all from them , was separated at 14th August, 1947 , ultimately due to some fault.
When we deeply study historical documents we see the leaders from both sides ensured the safety of minorities across borders. Still, there were those who didn’t accept the partition and tried to sabotage the process by agitation first and then converted it into a bloody massacre to fail the partition plan, they went up to possible extremes in their designs. Those were the actual culprits.