The full name is even longer JJJKJG. Yes that is it. Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jalpan Grih. Jai is victory, Jawan is a soldier, Kisan is the farmer, Jalpan is refreshment and Grih is house-for those who are Hindi challenged. Ustadji (or Thakurji) indeed was a retired soldier who opened at Purani Chungi this small eatery. Purani is old and a Chungi is an octoroi (tax to be paid on goods being moved from one place to another) post. (It is interesting that in Maharashtra this tax is called Zakat or Jakat). One specialty of Ustadji was that he used to get along very nicely with the AMU fraternity-the whole spectrum. The reason that the whole spectrum was covered is rather simple-his establishment was an old landmark-he ran it himself for a long enough time. It will be duplicity not to acknowledge that some unscrupulous elements were mean enough to indulge in some exploitation of this guileless person who was a shining example of mutual love. Everybody Alig had his Jai Jawan experience. Nothing extra-ordinary but the run of the mill experience that makes life what it is-beautiful. We shall present a few of them here.
Once, in the times of Janab Muhammed Hamid Ansari Sahab to be more precise, the admission process was disturbed by extra legal elements. It was drizzling so the idea was floated by one colleague that let is warm up with a tea at Jai Jawan. On entering Jai Jawan the pair beat what is famous three days after the Republic day. It is called the hasty retreat. Inside the whole contingent that had brought the admission process to a halt was parked!
Then there is that incidence when, after 1998 Pokharan blasts, the then Prime Minister had issued the third addendum to Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan of late Lal Bahadur Shashtri. The third addendum was Jai Vigyan. Your poor Alig suggested this addendum to Ustadji. His response was lack luster. Ustadji was a die hard congressman and anything coming out of BJP, the party to which the then Prime Minister belonged, was not acceptable. Ustadji's sort of challenged whether this new addition was sensible at all. Going for atomic device testing in 1998 was completely against the long standing Congress policy, the party that has non-violence as integral part of its history, and Ustadji was not to be swayed by shallow nationalistic jingo.
Finally there is this anecdote we Ustadji used to tell fondly. When Mufti Muhammed Saeed came to lime light in Kashmir he interviewed on television about his Aligarh experience. Amongst the the things that he mentioned was this land mark of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan. "I do not know whether it is still there but we used to frequent a place called Jai Jawan Jai Kisan", concurred Mufti Saeed Sahab. And Ustadji was obliged.
These are among the experiences that make Aligs what they are.
Once, in the times of Janab Muhammed Hamid Ansari Sahab to be more precise, the admission process was disturbed by extra legal elements. It was drizzling so the idea was floated by one colleague that let is warm up with a tea at Jai Jawan. On entering Jai Jawan the pair beat what is famous three days after the Republic day. It is called the hasty retreat. Inside the whole contingent that had brought the admission process to a halt was parked!
Then there is that incidence when, after 1998 Pokharan blasts, the then Prime Minister had issued the third addendum to Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan of late Lal Bahadur Shashtri. The third addendum was Jai Vigyan. Your poor Alig suggested this addendum to Ustadji. His response was lack luster. Ustadji was a die hard congressman and anything coming out of BJP, the party to which the then Prime Minister belonged, was not acceptable. Ustadji's sort of challenged whether this new addition was sensible at all. Going for atomic device testing in 1998 was completely against the long standing Congress policy, the party that has non-violence as integral part of its history, and Ustadji was not to be swayed by shallow nationalistic jingo.
Finally there is this anecdote we Ustadji used to tell fondly. When Mufti Muhammed Saeed came to lime light in Kashmir he interviewed on television about his Aligarh experience. Amongst the the things that he mentioned was this land mark of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan. "I do not know whether it is still there but we used to frequent a place called Jai Jawan Jai Kisan", concurred Mufti Saeed Sahab. And Ustadji was obliged.
These are among the experiences that make Aligs what they are.