"Khalq-e-Khuda Pe Koi Bhi Aafat Toot Sakti Hai"

On leaving Roopnagar, it is evident that Abba Jaan loses all fervour for Muslim nationalism. He only talks about the glorified Muslim history including the hardships suffered in times like the War of Independence of 1875 and the Jallianwala Bagh incident of 1919. But when he talks about the present or the future of Pakistan, he is completely disillusioned. He continuously attributes the fate of Muslims to God (Ye use khabar hai (pointing finger to the sky)) and does not participate in any political and religious conversations saying “Khwaja Sahab, hum ab kissi qisay mein bolte he nahi”. His only conversations are with members of his own family or with his only friend Khwaja Sahib. In those conversations too, there is constant nostalgia and Abba Jaan seems rooted in Roopnagar.

But the only time that Abba Jaan reveals his thoughts about Pakistan, he is forced by Khwaja Sahab who diverts the question “Jang ho gi ya nahi ho gi” to his friend. Here, we see Abba Jaan’s severe emotions regarding Pakistan and specifically regarding the moment of 1971 as he says, Jab hakim zaalim ho jaein ge aur auladein sarkish ho jaein tou phir khalq-e-khuda pe koi bhi aafat toot sakti hai”. Though the word aafat can be translated literally as disaster or misfortune, here it has more harsh connotations and can even be representative of after-life or the Day of Judgment. One can therefore say that after leaving Roopnagar, Abba Jaan waits for that aafat to come and that he has no expectations from the youth of his country to make the situation any better. He himself remains passive and makes no attempt to suggest change or motivate his son or his friends. It is because of this that we always see him confined to the domestic sphere of the home, alluding to God as the caretaker quite frequently (Woh hifaazat karne wala hai). His death then almost seems to be his personal choice rather than something in the will of God. It seems that he didn’t want to see this new country or his family members facing the misfortune that he predicted and chose to escape the grief earlier.