Mumtaz Hasan

Mumtaz Hasan^[a] (6 August 1907 – 28 October 1974) was a Pakistani poet and literary scholar. He served in financial roles in the government of Pakistan, including as finance secretary and acting governor of the State Bank of Pakistan.

He contributed to Urdu literature, Iqbal studies, and the preservation of archaeological heritage of Pakistan.

Mumtaz Hasan was born on 6 August 1907 in Talwandi Musa Khan, a village in Gujranwala, British India.^[1] He received his early schooling at the government school in Gujranwala. He subsequently studied at St. Stephen's College, Delhi, and Forman Christian College (FC College), Lahore, where he completed a BA and a master's degree in English literature between 1922 and 1930.^[1]

During his years at FC College, he acquired proficiency in Arabic, Persian, German, and French. He became associated with the FC College Magazine, the first college magazine published in Punjab, whose maiden issue had appeared in November 1903 which was renamed Folio in 1925; Hasan served first as its assistant editor and then as editor. He later served as a lecturer at Forman Christian College. In Urdu, his pen name (takhallus) was Ahsan.^[2]

Hasan began his career in government by joining the Indian Audit and Accounts Service in 1931. Between 1936 and 1939, he held the position of deputy comptroller of Sind, becoming the youngest Muslim officer to have done so; he had also been inducted into the Economic Pool in 1938.^[2]

When the Finance portfolio of the Interim Government of British India was allocated to the Muslim League in 1946, the party drew on Hasan's standing within the Ministry of Finance, attaching him to Liaquat Ali Khan in the capacity of private secretary.^[2] A particular concern at the time was the confidentiality of the 1946 budget; the Hindu clerical staff were regarded with suspicion as sympathisers of the Indian National Congress, and to guard against any leakage, Hasan transcribed the entire budget document by hand at Khan's residence.^[2] The manuscript remains on permanent display at the National Museum of Pakistan. He is additionally credited with advancing the proposal that income tax be levied in graduated slabs after the British fashion, with higher rates applied to higher incomes.^[2]

After independence, Hasan held a succession of positions within the Pakistani government. He served as finance secretary to the government of Pakistan between 1952 and 1959,^[1] and briefly assumed the responsibilities of governor of the State Bank of Pakistan in 1952, becoming the first official to sign Pakistan's currency notes in Urdu.^[1] He subsequently served as deputy chairman of the Planning Commission from 1959 until 1962, before being appointed managing director of the National Bank of Pakistan in March 1962, a position he held until his retirement in August 1967.^[1]

Hasan was a poet in Urdu, Persian, and English. His anthology of poems, Justuju, appeared in 1927. A collection of his articles, Maqalat-e-Mumtaz, was published by Idara-i-Yadgar-i-Ghalib.^[1]

Hasan built a substantial personal library over the years. He donated approximately 14,000 books to the Punjab Public Library, Lahore, and donated a portion of his collection to the Goethe Institut, Karachi.^[2]

Hasan was an authority on the poetry and philosophy of Allama Iqbal, on whom he wrote in both Urdu and English.^[2] As a student, he had met Iqbal at his Lahore residence and subsequently became a frequent visitor, joining the company of Iqbal and his guests for approximately twelve years. He played a central role in establishing the Iqbal Academy and served as its vice-chairperson. He also influenced German authorities to name a road in Heidelberg after Iqbal and to establish an Iqbal Chair at Heidelberg University.^[2]

In 1973, he published Iqbal and Abdul Haq, a research work reproducing eight letters written by Iqbal to Abdul Haq, with notes and annotations.^[2]

During the Ghalib centenary celebrations in 1969, Hasan organised a series of English lectures on Ghalib at the Pakistan American Cultural Center (PACC) in Karachi, inviting Pakistani and foreign scholars including professor Ahmed Ali and American historian professor Anstie T. Embree.^[2] He subsequently compiled these lectures into a book titled The Aspects of Ghalib, published by the PACC in 1970. A translation by Shah Mohi-ul-Haq Farooqi, titled Jihat-i-Ghalib, was published by Idara-i-Yadgar-i-Ghalib, Karachi, in 2000, bearing Hasan's name as compiler.^[2]

In Search of Daibul and Other Speeches, a collection of his writings and speeches, was published by the Pakistan Writers Guild, in 1968.^[2]

Hasan had developed an interest in history and archaeology, particularly relating to Sindh. He worked to establish tourism facilities at Mohenjo-daro and initiated the preservation of historical tombs at Makli.^[2] He also commenced excavations at Bhambhor, near Thatta, in 1958, aimed at locating the ancient city of Daibal, the first city of Sindh conquered by Muhammad bin Qasim which led to the discovery of the Daibal Temple and what is described as the first mosque of the subcontinent built at Bhambhor. He served as chairperson of the Urdu Taraqqi Board from 1958 to 1974 and was associated with numerous literary and cultural organisations.^[2]

Hasan died in Karachi on 28 October 1974. He was buried at Paposh Nagar Graveyard, Karachi, Pakistan.^[2]

• The Government of Pakistan awarded him the Sitara-i-Pakistan (Star of Pakistan) award in 1958.^[1][2]
• The University of the Punjab conferred upon him an honorary LLD degree in 1968.
• He also received awards from Germany and Iran.^[1]