Punjab police is among the oldest and essentially the most conventional departments of the province, and its tradition, historical past and behavior patterns are all rooted within the British period. The tradition and custom nonetheless persist within the division, and are one thing like a colonial hangover the place the officer nonetheless presides over his underlings like a sahib bahadur of the British Raj.
This ‘locally-produced’ sahib bahadur is an attention-grabbing spectacle to look at. He has a college training and speaks a concoction of English and Urdu, and nonetheless takes his pauses to search out the equal phrase in Urdu of a phrase he is aware of solely in English. When he’s unable to search out the phrase, his reader, who serves as an assistant to the officer, senses the tense setting and jumps in to dissipate the strain by whispering the phrase if he is aware of it, or, to announce that ‘sahab ka lunch/cha’aay time ho gaya hay’ [Sir will have lunch/tea now!], and all people simply leaves the workplace.
Sahib bahadur additionally has temper swings, and he begins feeling higher after a quite beneficiant and verbose rant on the different finish of which stands in utter submission any of his subordinates who sadly occurs to be current there on the time.
The underlings additionally recognise the truth that their sahib is other-worldly, who occurs to talk English with a pop of Urdu, eats whereas utilizing knives and forks, likes to eat issues that others don’t, like fried rice or spaghetti, and occasional and toasted bread or croissants within the morning, and at all times makes use of paper towels.
So that they name him Noori; made of sunshine. The underlings recognise the fragility of their Noori officer and take particular care of his temper and temperament, and sure issues typically by no means attain the officer and are sorted out by the underlings; the Naari; made of fireplace.
So the sahib bahadur sits untouched, and, after all, regally on his leather-upholstered swinging chair enveloped in his grandiosity, and the Naari softly tip-toes round him, lest they excite his Noori fragility with their Naari presence.
The strains above could sound satirical, which they really are, however have been written in good humour. No person ought to take it personally, particularly the Noori officer.
It should even be recognised that the one who has written these strains can be recognized as a locally-produced sahib bahadur, however he occurs to acknowledge the truth that issues shouldn’t be like this and that we must always attempt to push ourselves out of this colonial hangover.
AHMAD KHAN
RAWALPINDI