.png)
Munir Niazi is cosidered one of the most distinctive voices in modern Urdu and Punjabi poetry. Known for his melancholic, introspective style, he wrote about loneliness, longing, regret, memory, and the passage of time.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor
(Jitender Gupta)Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday responded to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement on tackling NEET paper leaks with a couplet from renowned Pakistani poet Munir Niazi's iconic poem.
'Hamesha der kar deta hun mein har kaam karne mein, zaroori baat kehni ho, koi vaada nibhana ho,' Tharoor wrote the Urdu lines in Hindi in response to PM Modi's post on X.
Modi said on Thursday that the government has decided to set up fast track courts to ensure swift and stringent punishment for those involved in paper leaks.
This was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first big reaction on the protests held in national capital over paper leaks and growing demands for resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The protests that have captured national imagination have been on for 34 days with activist Sonam Wangchuk on hunger strike for 26 days.
Tharoor backs students
Tharoor has been a vocal supporter of the protests and the student cause. He even met those injured during CJP march in the national capital on 20 July.
“I always manage to delay, whatever I must do, A crucial word I had to say, a pledge I should see through.” Tharoor wrote the lines that capture the emotional core of Munir Niazi's poem's first couplet.
"Hamesha der kar deta hoon mein" is one of the most celebrated poems by the Pakistani poet Munir Niazi and considered a meditation on delayed action and lifelong regret bu those who follow Urdu poetry and prose. The opening 'sher' is often quoted to describe acting too late or realising the importance of something only after the moment has passed.
Who was Munir Niazi?
Munir Niazi is cosidered one of the most distinctive voices in modern Urdu and Punjabi poetry. Known for his melancholic, introspective style, he wrote about loneliness, longing, regret, memory, and the passage of time.
Born in 1928 in Khanpur, Hoshiarpur district (now in Punjab, India), Niazi migrated to Pakistan during the Partition in 1947 and eventually settled in Lahore, where he became a major literary figure. He died in 2006.
He wrote in both Urdu and Punjabi, publishing numerous collections of poetry over five decades. Niazi's work is admired for its conversational language, evocative imagery, and ability to convey profound emotions through everyday experiences.
I always manage to delay, whatever I must do, A crucial word I had to say, a pledge I should see through.
Apart from ‘Hamesha Der Kar Deta Hoon Main’, Niazi is known for ‘Safar Mein Dhoop To Hogi’ – a poem about perseverance through hardship and ‘Kuch Baat Hai Ke Hasti Mitti Nahin Hamari.’
Niazi’s poetry has been widely recited at literary gatherings across South Asia and has inspired musicians, actors, and public figures.
About the Author
Gulam Jeelani
Gulam Jeelani is Political Desk Editor at LiveMint with over 16 years of experience covering national and international politics. Based in New Delhi, Jeelani delivers impactful political narratives through breaking stories, in-depth interviews, and analytical pieces at LiveMint since February 2024. The expertise in video production fuels his current responsibilities, which include curating content and conducting video interviews for an expanding digital audience.<br><br> Jeelani also travels during elections and key political events and has covered assembly elections in key states apart from national elections. He has previously worked with The Pioneer, Network18, India Today, News9Plus and Hindustan Times.<br><br> Jeelani’s tenure at LiveMint and previous experience at print and digital newsrooms have honed his skills in creating compelling text and video stories, explainers, and analysis that resonate with a diverse viewership.<br><br> Before moving to New Delhi in 2015, Jeelani was based in Uttar Pradesh, where he worked for five years as a reporter. In 2018, Jeelani was one of the two Indian journalists selected for the Alfred Friendly Fellowship in the US. There, he attended training workshops on reporting and data journalism, and he was attached to the Minneapolis Star Tribune in Minnesota, where he worked as a reporter.<br><br> Jeelani is a Bachelor's in Chemistry and holds a Masters Degree in journalism and mass communication from Aligarh Muslim University. Outside work, he enjoys poetry, cricket and movies.
English (US) ·