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The story behind Allama Iqbal's statue in Lahore that has Twitter riled up

The story behind Allama Iqbal's statue in Lahore that has Twitter riled up

According to an official, the statue — which some want gone and others say should remain — is a work in progress.
Updated 02 Feb, 2021

A statue of the late national poet, Allama Iqbal, at Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park in Lahore has Twitter riled up. People have taken offence to the questionable state of the statue, calling it a disgrace to the man it aims to honour.

"We started constructing it during the first wave of the coronavirus. It took us three months to bring some shape to it," the former director of the park, Ghulam Sibtain, who lead the construction initiative, told Dawn.

“We did not hire any architect to make the statue but two gardeners worked on it.”

Picture of the 'original' statue that Ghulam Sibtain shared with Dawn.
Picture of the 'original' statue that Ghulam Sibtain shared with Dawn.

Sibtain took the initiative after orders by former Punjab Horticulture Authority (PHA) director, General Muzaffar Siyal, to construct a "selfie point" in the park.

He said that he purchased a giant poster of Allama Iqbal to use as a reference for the statue.

Sibtain said he did not spend any state money to make this selfie point. “I requested some elderly people who come to the park daily to help us with funds in the making of this statue. We bought cement with the collected funds, and used iron rods and wood dumped in the park.”

He said that the statue was a work in progress when he was transferred from the post last month. "We have only completed the left side of the statue but the right side remains incomplete. The statue is not yet accurate. We wanted to paint it golden but it remains in its white unfinished form."

Even though Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has taken notice of the statue and ordered its removal for now, Twitterati are undeterred in their criticism; some are angry and see the statue as a national insult, others are using it as a meme opportunity.

The meme journey is inevitable

Activists and journalists seem angry

People know Iqbal wouldn't be amused

But wait — some want it to stay!

Now that you mention it...

Comments

Solomon The King Feb 02, 2021 04:43pm
Images intro with poor editing and confusing should be taken to the task too by twitter
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HashBrown® Feb 02, 2021 04:48pm
'Sibtain said he did not spend any state money to make this selfie point. “I requested some elderly people who come to the park daily to help us with funds in the making of this statue. We bought cement with the collected funds, and used iron rods and wood dumped in the park.”' How can this be corruption and incompetence if no state funds were used? It sounds like it was a good initiative, which also served the purpose of using material that had been dumped in the park. Maybe it's not to everybody's liking, but the intention was noble. Perhaps the Allama himself would have appreciated that.
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K Feb 02, 2021 04:50pm
It’s because of discrimination nothing else. Pakistan can never become a pluralistic society.
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Vishesh Feb 02, 2021 04:50pm
Seems like 3-D printed statue....appears to be so so real ;)
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CU Feb 02, 2021 04:53pm
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If no public money was used, then we should be more tolerant of the 'art' and the passion gone into it. This 'aesthetic-shaming' must stop.
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Mahmood Feb 02, 2021 04:58pm
Statutes are specifically forbiden in Islam!
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Roma Feb 02, 2021 04:58pm
This is cool impressionistic sculpture of Iqbal. Why make fun of it.
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Nonmuslim Feb 02, 2021 04:58pm
How there is a statue in a Muslim country?
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Saeeds Feb 02, 2021 05:01pm
Art and music are not Pakistani culture and traditions . We should not waste our time on these things.
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AAA Feb 02, 2021 05:05pm
Bravo, what an achievement.
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Lahori Feb 02, 2021 05:08pm
To be honest, it is a sincere personal effort by an amature artist
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usman shah Feb 02, 2021 05:08pm
Remove this statue ; and hire the 2 gardeners who made it , to make a statue of Sibtain ( park director ) wearing a foolscap for selfies ; youngsters would love it .
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SATT Feb 02, 2021 05:19pm
That is the Iqbal of bad times.
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Amer Feb 02, 2021 05:34pm
After reading the background story... I was like: What's the big deal ? It's made of donated money and not government funds, so why don't the people on twitter including third class tv hosts pay to get a world class statue built somewhere else ?
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Ifti Malik Feb 02, 2021 05:35pm
Iqbal was an iconoclast and these people want to 'honour' him with an ugly statue ? What about honouring his ideals and philosophy of life ? Where is 'Khudi ' in our everyday lives ? Where is the reconstruction of religious thought along contemporary lines , as envisaged by him ? What a sorry bunch of hypocrites we all are.
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Rao Feb 02, 2021 05:36pm
Pakistan politicians are degrading the image of Islamic Republic of Pakistan
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RAI Feb 02, 2021 05:44pm
LOL.... did not have the money to hire architects so 2 gardners worked on it !!!
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Lord Ickenham Feb 02, 2021 05:45pm
So what if we cant afford sculptors to do the job, atleast we tried. Ghabrana nahi hai
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Sid Feb 02, 2021 05:56pm
What a waste of money!!
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harish Feb 02, 2021 05:58pm
Should have asked iron brother to make this statue...They would have made it, they are specialized in copying, just need to provide a photo
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Hussain Feb 02, 2021 06:00pm
Anything which Hamid Mir complain about is good for me !
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ABE Feb 02, 2021 06:24pm
@Rao You are right. i'm sure many will agree with me, when I say, that most Pakistani Polticians B-grade or lower,. Many have fake degrees, or no degress of any grade at all. So what can we expect from the ill-informed and ignorant blinded by greed and need for bloating their self-image, if they have nothing else to brag about as their crowning achievements in life??
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M. Emad Feb 02, 2021 06:27pm
Pakistan should have 'National Poets' from each native Languages.
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HonorBright Feb 02, 2021 06:43pm
We must admit that the Iqbal whose poetry is being shared on social media deserves a statue too. That one for that Iqbal!
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Amin Arab Feb 02, 2021 06:47pm
I like the statue , we don't wanna spend so much money on statues, but we still need a reminder of our forefathers, this is perfect
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M. Emad Feb 02, 2021 07:02pm
Looks like Pakistan national poet, Allama Iqbal's statue at Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, Lahore made by a 1st-year sculpture-art student.
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Ahmed Feb 02, 2021 07:24pm
Why in the world we spend money on statues.
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Chrís Dăn Feb 02, 2021 07:25pm
Shows a lack of tolerance by people. Some built this statue on donations by common people and is a sign of their deep respect for Allama Iqbal. People could have an empathy /some compassion for the feelings behind this statue.
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well-wisher Feb 02, 2021 08:33pm
Honor the great poet and keep the statue as it was from pure love. PK should be proud.
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Truth be told Feb 02, 2021 08:34pm
Amazing artwork and done without wasting any funds. The beauty of the structure is that the amateur artist is able to express such intricate details. Having had one ball followed by inability to defecate is a conundrum depicted in this statute, which even Picasso wouldn't have been able to express and that too with limited resources. Talented people indeed.
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kulbhushan Yadav Feb 02, 2021 09:13pm
Compare this to Statue of Unity ( Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel) in India.
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Imran Feb 02, 2021 09:29pm
9th wonder in the world.
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Imran Feb 02, 2021 09:30pm
An example of sofisticated modern art for next generation to learn.
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RationalBabu Feb 02, 2021 09:41pm
@Mahmood so are paintings and photographs, and music and dance too!
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Dr. Madhusudhan Reddy Tokala Feb 02, 2021 09:44pm
@Mahmood What else is forbidden
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Lalit Feb 02, 2021 09:48pm
The real 'art' lies in the manner ,the park management has given the twist to the story....
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Iftikhar Khan Feb 03, 2021 02:34am
Hire same two gardener to built a statue of Imran Khan, to be placed in front of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital.
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pakOne Feb 03, 2021 03:59am
The gardners who crafted this statue should be hired as architects for Naya Pakistan.
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AHGONDAL Feb 03, 2021 08:54am
As a nation we are determined to obliterate our history and ridicule our heroes. What a shame!
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Zak Feb 03, 2021 11:11am
Sculptor needs new glasses.
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Zak Feb 03, 2021 11:45am
@Saeeds Art and music are not Pakistani culture and traditions . We should not waste our time on these things. Surprising an Indian would say that, bollywood survived because of Pakistani actors, singers and talent.
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Abhinadhan Feb 03, 2021 11:48am
@kulbhushan Yadav 'Compare this to Statue of Unity ( Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel) in India. Modi is spending $330million on that useless Statue when 1.3 billion poor of India are starving.
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Salman Feb 03, 2021 12:14pm
They find plenty of money to steal but no fund to commission a statue. Pathetic state of mind.
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Mushfiq Feb 03, 2021 12:17pm
@Mahmood Had This happens when no one teaches the meanings of Allama Iqbal's message!
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ABE Feb 03, 2021 02:44pm
@Mushfiq You are absolutely right. Along with Iqbal's message, no one even thinks, talks about, much less practice Unity, Faith or Discipline that Mr. Jinnah was famous far. The founding principles for the state of Pakistan have long been forgotten. Respect for our founding fathers was long gone, before the circues show and desecration of the Qaid's Masoleum by the unsavory characters like Capt. Safdar, with slogans being raised, shouting and using the tomb for poltical rallies. This is how low we have sunk. When people forget what sacrifices our forefathers made to achieve independence, than all is lost. They have no regard for the priceless freedom as a Muslim nation we enjoy, a separate homeland, where we can practice our faith without fear or persecution. Unlike the poor Rohingyas, Uhighar Muslims, the Palestinians and many others endure under brutal occupation. Cherish your mother land. Respect the founding fathers and their teachings. Value the gift that some only dream of.
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Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad Feb 03, 2021 03:04pm
What a grave and great tragedy?
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SOUNDER RAJAN Feb 03, 2021 03:55pm
@Zak Yes, they were smart enough to chose the right side of the border. Many on the other side, paid with their lives.
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Mhd Saleem Feb 03, 2021 06:56pm
Why a statue in the first place? It is not part of our culture.
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Rami Feb 03, 2021 07:24pm
This was done by the lawncare, maintance guys,not professional artist! They should get praise for their effort ! No big money was donated to create this tribute ! Only in Pakistan,where people find fault with praiseworthy effort!
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Rami Feb 03, 2021 07:28pm
@SATT Iqbal would say great, the effort and used of recycle material is great for the environment , what needs to be removed are plazas and building build by corruption money !
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