Mohsin Dawar — Behind the Camera

I served Mr. Mohsin Dawar and the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the National Assembly of Pakistan, which Mr. Dawar chaired, as a Foreign Policy Consultant. On the second anniversary of the National Democratic Movement (NDM), I wish to pen down my thoughts on the Chairman of the Party, Mr. Mohsin Dawar, with whom I spent many months and delved into almost every topic under the sky.

As a lifelong student of politics and statesmanship, and a young man returning from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, I was keen on observing a real-life politician at the time I joined the Committee.

This is how I found Mohsin Dawar.

1. The bravest man I know.

I once asked Mohsin Dawar if he was ever scared for his life given that he was incredibly vocal against terrorists. He told me, “You can’t sit at home for fear of dying. I remember that my family used to warn me against my political activities. I used to tell my father that X person used to stay in his house all the time and avoid all sorts of political activities. They have killed him too. If we all must die that way, we better die speaking.”

Mr. Dawar faces serious threats from the most vicious of men. But he doesn’t bother them to come all the way for him; he visits them and holds processions in their heartlands. He is the bravest man I know — not one of the bravest.

2. Never saw him misusing power.

I never, even for once, saw Mohsin Dawar even jokingly suggesting that he was holding a high office. We have a toxic power culture in Pakistan. We take pride in bypassing the line “through a powerful connection” rather than standing in one.

I vividly remember two instances in which anyone, at least most of the people I know, would have resorted to brandishing their power if they could.

One, when a traffic warden, who did not recognize Mohsin Dawar sitting inside the car, told his driver to “move away your car.” This is the man who received calls from tens of people, every single day, asking him to “talk to the officer” who had stopped them on a naaka/checkpost — because that’s what we do in Pakistan. I was curious about his reaction to the warden. Before his driver could say anything, Mohsin Dawar asked his driver to move the car away. In another instance, and this one really convinced us that we were about to witness a physical altercation, an MP literally blasted on Mohsin Dawar’s driver, who had mistakenly taken the car too close to him in the National Assembly parking lot. That MP, knowing that Mr. Dawar was sitting inside the car, did not hold anything that came to his tongue. He was really, really, offensive. Knowing Pashtuns pretty well, I knew that if Mohsin Dawar moved his finger, they’d be willing to die for the man. Mohsin Dawar politely apologized to the MP and rebuked his driver for taking the car too close to the man.

3. His door was always open for his people.

I do not remember a day when Mohsin Dawar’s chamber was not filled with tens of people from his constituency. People from all sorts of backgrounds came to visit him. I met powerful Masharaan, MPs, and bureaucrats in his chamber, and I met ordinary constituents of his in his chamber who would sometimes be wearing worn-out clothes and broken sandals — every single day. And I found Mohsin Dawar happier and more smiley around the latter. He never “acted powerful” around anyone, especially the weak. He was always utterly polite and would never hold back his laughter at a good joke. Sometimes, people would come to him with the kind of requests that would make a normal person lose temper: outlandish demands that no reasonable person could make. He would only smile and tell them the problem with their request without being rude or loud, even slightly. He is a people’s man in the true sense of the word.

4. The way he greeted everyone

No matter who would enter the door, Mohsin Dawar would stand up from his chair with a loud “Pakhair” and hug whoever had come. I loved this thing about him. Sometimes, the guest would be surprised to see the reaction of Mr. Dawar because he, perhaps, would be thinking of a typical, stiff-necked politician in a big office. Far from it, Mr. Dawar would not only welcome everyone but also escort everyone to the gate.

5. His sincerity with his cause

First of all, what is Mohsin Dawar’s cause? His foremost cause was to raise the issue of the suffering of the Pashtun, particularly those belonging to the erstwhile FATA region. I don’t remember a single meeting of his with foreign dignitaries, and I was part of almost every one of them, in which he did not raise the issues of Waziristan and the broader KPK: underdevelopment, poverty, illiteracy, and most of all, the security crisis. He would speak at length and urge each one of them to assist him in improving the situation in the ex-FATA region. Moreover, if anyone is interested, I urge you to visit North Waziristan and take a look at the developmental work that Mr. Dawar did with his allotted funds. His passion project, as far as I remember, was Pir Roshaan University. He delayed his trip to the U.S. multiple times for its inauguration. Secondly, he is a staunch follower of the legendary Bacha Khan. He would often talk about his disgust for violence, especially in politics. I talked to him many times about the Kharqamar incident, when fifteen members of the PTM were butchered in broad daylight while he was standing there with them. He famously did not resort to violence in reply (watch his famous post-Kharqamar address to the people of his constituency).

6. A Democrat to the core

Mohsin Dawar is a staunch Democrat. I have talked with the man on long walks and in post-office heart-to-heart chats. He has disgust for everything dictatorial. Most interestingly, Mohsin Dawar is not a Democrat merely in the sense that he desires to see timely elections and constitutional supremacy — which he absolutely does, of course; you just need to read his speeches in the House. Mohsin Dawar is *democratically minded*. He will listen to you, no matter who you are. He will weigh his arguments against yours. He will never shut you up for any reason whatsoever. He will give you the time to explain yourself, even if the case you are making is that Mohsin Dawar is absolutely wrong. He is a rational man to his core. If he wants to take any action, he will consult elders and younger ones alike. Such democracy of the mind is rare among our politicians.

7. His deeds and words never collided.

Whatever stance Mohsin Dawar took with me in his private conversations, sometimes quite bold, he would go to the House and utter it in his speeches. And I would sit in the gallery, flabbergasted. If he believed that the Taliban were a force for evil, he would tell you that in private and in public. If he believed that human rights were being quashed, he would say that in private and in public. I can quote one example after another. The point is that the thing I appreciate most about Mohsin Dawar is that he is not a hypocrite.

8. Respect for women

We would joke behind Mr. Dawar that we had never even seen him *gazing* at another woman. Never! Every single time a woman would drop by his office, he would treat them with such high regard and respect that it was awe-inspiring. If women needed purdah, he would make them sit in a separate, adjoining room. Many women would later reach out to me with duas for Mohsin Dawar. I never saw a woman uncomfortable in his presence.

9. Never gave me anxiety.

Lastly, I want to write a few words about our relationship. Every morning I would enter the room, and Mr. Dawar would stand up from his chair with a loud scream of “Excellency, welcome!” and side-hug me. I am saying *every day*. He treated me with such high regard that one of his constituents once said to me, “I think Mr. Dawar works for you.” Rebuke is a far thing; he never uttered a word that could be hurtful. I am a very opinionated person, and I would say everything to Mr. Dawar’s face. At times, I would criticize too. In those instances, he would be doubly attentive to my point of view. He made me feel at home at the Standing Committee, and I am glad that I had the opportunity to serve the great man.

I love my Pashtoon family, and I wish to work for their concerns for the rest of my life. All I wish to tell them is that a leader like Mohsin Dawar is born in ages. He is the man to carry forward the legacy of the greats. He is a brave Democrat who wouldn’t think twice before giving everything up for his people, even his life.