Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman (1927 – 25 January 1992) was the founder and editor of the
Jang Group of Newspapers
Jang Media Group (), also known as Geo Group, is a Pakistani media conglomerate and a subsidiary of Dubai-based company Independent Media Corporation. Its headquarters is in Printing House, Karachi, Pakistan. It is Pakistan's largest group of new ...
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. A self-made newspaper magnate, he ranks among the most successful newspaper entrepreneurs in Pakistan.
Early life
Mir Khalil ur Rahman was born in 1927 to a
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to:
* People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir
* Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley
* Kashmiri language, their language
People with the name
* Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
business family who migrated from
Kashmir Valley
The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...
due to economic reason to
Gujranwala
Gujranwala ( ur, , label=none; ) is a city and capital of Gujranwala Division located in Pakistan. It is also known as "City of Wrestlers" and is quite famous for its food. It is the 5th most populous city proper after Karachi, Lahore, Faisala ...
,
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
, where he was born. He received his basic schooling from the same place. He matriculated from Fatehpuri Muslim High School in Delhi and received a degree from Daryaganj Commercial College, Delhi.
During the Second World War, his parents moved to
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
, the capital of India. It was here that he discovered his love for journalism. The world of newspapers attracted him far more than the dull books of accounting. He had a passion for reading and writing and a fondness for newspapers and magazines. He sat glued to his radio set, listening to the latest war news.
In 1940, when he was still a student, he started and founded a newspaper for the
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
in
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
. He called it the ''Jang'', or ''War''. Some of his critics said, at that time, that he encouraged the war hysteria by selecting a name like that for his newspaper but Mir Khalil-ur-Rehman made it clear that he was doing it for the soldiers and not to encourage the
Second world war
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Career
After the independence of
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
on 14 August 1947, Mir Khalil moved to
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
, first capital of the newly created state of Pakistan, and started publishing the
Daily Jang
The ''Daily Jang'' ( ur, ) is an Urdu newspaper headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. It is the oldest newspaper of Pakistan in continuous publication since its foundation in 1939, first published during World War II, hence the name (Jang) translat ...
from there which was funded by a loan of 5000 rupees from Abdul Ghani Barq of
Ferozsons
Ferozsons (Pvt) Limited (also Ferozsons Publishers) ( ur, ) is a Pakistani publishing company in Lahore, Pakistan. Established in 1894, it is Pakistan’s oldest publishing house.
In 1954, the Ferozsons Business Group expanded when one of the ...
Publishers of Lahore. Pakistan's first Governor General and founder,
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
was delighted by this move and offered the government's help in running it. Mir, however, declined the offer saying that the freedom of the press was his motto and goal for journalism in Pakistan. Mir also helped in the founding of the
Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors
The Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) has worked since its foundation in 1957 as the combined body of newspaper editors in Pakistan
. He opposed, tooth and nail, any government measures or action which curbed the freedom of the press in Pakistan.