How some kept their wits during Pak Emergency

AMUSED NOT ALARMED: Saleema Hashmi amused the policemen while they were arresting her.

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Lahore: The two famous things about the historic city of Lahore are its culture and spicy curries. Being the Capital of Punjab, it's also a major political nerve center.

The city is also home to some of Pakistan's most popular lawyers, scholars and poets. In the past, they have been the most vociferous critics of the military rule. And ever since the Emergency, they have been put in the direct line of fire.

Saleema Hashmi is one of the most noted Lahoris of our times. She is a renowned artist and leading human rights activist. But perhaps what is most striking is her sense of humour .

When the Emergency was imposed Saleema was one of the first people to be arrested.

"I clearly remember it was the afternoon of November 4th , a day after the emergency was imposed. There were 50-60 of us present at the office of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan when there was the proverbial knock on the door” she says.

None could have imagined the way Saleema took on the authorities.

“They asked us all to move out but I refused and made myself comfortable in my chair. So they threatened that they will pick me up with the chair. I said main nahi uthoongi (I will not get up) , if you want you can pick me up with the chair. Then they picked me up with the chair and started to carry me out,” she recalls with a smile.

There was no media to record all this, but it didn't stop her from putting up quite a show.

“While they were carrying me with the chair, they said, 'Stop all this drama, there is no media to capture these images.' But I replied, 'Yeh pictures toh mere dil me capture of gayi hain' (These images have been captured in my heart),” says Saleema.

At the end of this ordeal she didn’t forget to drive home the point.

“They had packed everybody in the vans. Finally I said keep me down. So the policeman sarcastically asked, 'Why did you leave the chair now?' to which I said, ‘Because I am not Musharraf' , she says.

Her story comes as a surprise to all those who believe that there can be no humour in these troubled times. But anyone who has met Saleema Hashmi will tell you that biting wit is very much part of Lahore's spice.