Written by: Waseem Abbas
Posted on: January 07, 2022 | 
| 中文
A view of Iqbal Hostel from the right side of its building
Rarely a few educational institutions in Pakistan are of the caliber and historical significance of Lahore's Government College University (GCU). Its uniqueness has much to do with its historic building, rich history, notable alumni and the nostalgia that it creates among the Alumni (Ravians). Amphitheatre, Love Garden, Bukhari Auditorium, Hockey Ground, Bangla Campus, old tower, old building and the historic library are a few of the historical places at GCU, Lahore. Iqbal Hostel, also known as the Quadrangle, is one of the oldest buildings of historical significance at the GCU, Lahore which has a rich history.
Built in 1891 as a Boarding House for the boys coming from far-off places, the Iqbal Hostel soon became an integral part of the Government College. As it was adjacent to the academic building and the library, its significance multiplied as students could attend classes and be back in the hostel in five minutes. The western, eastern and the main gate side were constructed in the early years, while the portion attached to the Urdu Bazar was constructed later, thus making it a quadrangle.
An aerial view of the Government College University Lahore and the Iqbal Hostel. The red arrow pointing is Iqbal Hostel and the building between the yellow and the blue arrow is the academic block.
Iqbal Hostel is named after Allama Muhammad Iqbal, the national poet of Pakistan, who lived in this boarding house for around five years, between 1895-1900, during his college and university days. Other notable personalities who lived in the Iqbal Hostel include Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Patras Bukhari, etc. Due to Iqbal's long stay in this hostel, it has become a part of our heritage.
It was a generally known that Iqbal resided at the Boarding House (now Iqbal Hostel) during his college and university days, but the exact room where he stayed was contested. It was commonly believed that Iqbal stayed in the room attached to the main gate, which now is the Superintendent's office. A committee comprising of distinguished professors, including Dr. Khursheed Rizvi, Dr. Zaheer Ahmed Siddique, and the then Superintendent of the Iqbal Hostel Dr. Khalid Mehmood Sanjrani, searched and reviewed all available resources on Iqbal and the Hostel to ascertain the exact room where the poet of the East stayed.
An inscription on the left side of the door of Iqbal's room mentions that Iqbal stayed in this room
The document that helped the committee in tracing Iqbal's room was written by Iqbal's friend and contemporary Ghulam Bhik Nairang, who in one of his articles "Allama Iqbal k Baaz Haalaat (Some circumstances of Iqbal) elaboratively sketched Iqbal's personality and his stay at the Hostel. In this article, Nairang has not only specified Iqbal's room but has also detailed Iqbal's everyday activities in the hostel, which includes the use of hookah (tobacco pipe which draws smoke through water) while sitting on a desi charpoy, talking and joking with friends on the lawn of the hostel. Based on Nairang's document and close observations, the committee concluded that the first room on the western side of the hostel was Iqbal's room. A close examination was needed because rooms had no numbers attached during Iqbal's stay at the hostel.
Allama Iqbal's room was formally inaugurated on the 8th of January 2016 by the then Vice-Chancellor of GCU, Dr. Hasan Amir Shah and Allama Iqbal's grandson Muneeb Iqbal. Instead of turning Iqbal's room into a museum, the administration has decided to allot it to the student who excels in the first year as an undergraduate, in order to encourage and inculcate a spirit of hard-work. There is a notice on the left side of the room stating that Iqbal stayed in this room and the date of its formal inauguration. While inside the room, many things belonging to Iqbal are on the wall for public display, including two hangers and a table that Iqbal used, a picture of Iqbal from his stay at the hostel (1899), and his poems "Javed ke naam" (In the name of Javed), and (Aik Nawjawan ke Naam (In the name of a youth), a framed Ghulam Baig Nairang's article that helped in locating Iqbal's room, and a copy of the committee’s decision about the room.
Allama Iqbal's picture hanging on the wall in the Iqbal Hostel
The Hostel works under the tutelage of the GCU administration, with a warden and a superintendent formally supervising it. The hostel has its own sports room, a dining hall, a library and a volleyball court inside its premises. Rules and regulations are strictly followed, with no relaxation for anyone. One of the important features that have continued for decades is the mandatory study period in the hostel, which usually lasts from 9 to 11:30 pm. No one is allowed to use the phone, talk, or even eat at that time. The hostel prefects, along with the admin staff can pay surprise visits to the rooms to see if the students are reading or not. After 12:30 am, no one is allowed to come outside their rooms. The strict policing at first seems quirky, but it helps in the overall discipline.
The hostel is administered with the help of students, with different committees for different activities, like sports committee, mess committee, library committee, literary committee, magazine committee etc. All these committees are comprised and led by the inhabitants of the hostel. The hostel has been publishing its annual magazine called "The Iqbal", which includes articles, poems, travelogues, fictional stories, directory and pictures of important events at the hostel. Published in both Urdu and English, most of the pieces in 'the Iqbal' are written by the undergraduate students of GCU, with some articles added from alumni, professors, and notable writers.
A current view of Allama Iqbal's room. (Picture credits to Awais Alam)
Most of the students can be seen playing volleyball from 6 to 8:30 pm, while others can be seen in the sports room playing chess, carom board and badminton. The hostel has maintained a quality mess, with the hostel's mess committee comprising of students deciding the menu of the mess every month.
When one enters the hostel through its only gate, the gigantic walls and the long gate makes one feel as he/she is entering a prison. The old building made of red bricks, its high walls, ghostly appearance of the rooms, and the long fans hanging from the ceiling might be intimidating, but the green interior with pavements of the Quadrangle come as a pleasant surprise as well. However, the sound of chirping birds is a soothing and an uplifting experience.
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