Abdullah Haroon

Abdullah Haroon was born into a Kutchi Memon family.[3] He lost his father at an early age and was raised by his grandmother who was a deeply religious lady.[4] Early in his life, he worked as an 'assistant bicycle repairman' for 4 annas (quarter of an Indian rupee). He deeply believed in the dignity of labor. Then in 1896, at the age of 24, he started his own business as a small merchant. He soon became very successful and was called the 'Sugar King' by his contemporaries due to his business trades in sugar.[4] In 1901, he developed an interest in politics. He first became a member of the Karachi Municipality from May 1913 to September 1916. Again he was a member of this body from 1 May 1921 to 21 August 1934.

Abdullah Haroon first joined the Indian National Congress party in 1917 and started to participate in the Independence movement of India. Soon he was disenchanted with the policies of the Congress party of India and joined the All-India Muslim League party and remained its strong supporter till his death. In 1919, he became president of the Khilafat Committee of Sindh, a branch of the larger Khilafat Movement of India under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jouhar.[4] He also served as president of the Sindh Provincial Muslim League from 1920 to 1930.[2]

In 1930, he attended the All-India Muslim Conference and in the same year, he formed the Sind United Party on the pattern of the Unionist Party (Punjab) which called for the separation of Sindh from the Bombay Presidency, which took place in April 1936. Although his party won a plurality of seats in the 1937 provincial elections it was not able to form the government as its leaders like Haroon and Sir Shah Nawaz Bhutto failed to be elected. He was knighted by King George VI in the 1937 Coronation Honours list and came to be known as Sir Abdullah Haroon.[5] The decline of the Sind United Party let him to organize the Muslim League in Sindh in 1938.[2]

Abdullah Haroon piloted the independence of Pakistan resolution in the Sindh Provincial Muslim League Conference in October 1938 under the presidency of the Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. He also endorsed the 'Pakistan Resolution' on behalf of all Muslims of Sindh at the 27th Session of the Muslim League at Lahore on 23 March 1940.[6]

Abdullah Haroon died on 27 April 1942 in Karachi.[1] He had donated ten thousand rupees to the Muslim League at Allahabad in 1942. He was a philanthropist and active in social welfare projects throughout his life and contributed to many charitable institutions.[2] The Pakistan Post Office also had issued a postage stamp in his honour in its 'Pioneers of Freedom' series.[4]