Who is a Shaheed?

Sardar Arbab Rashid (News Post 28 Oct. 2009) asks as to who is a “Shaheed” and why is this distinction confined only to the army persons killed in action, as generally the others like Police officials dying on  duty are mentioned as ‘Jan Bahaq hona’ by the media?  I am no religious authority but think that anyone laying down his life in the cause of Islam and for Allah is a Shaheed, whether military or civil. And, it is also for Allah alone to know who is a Shaheed and who is not. As far as our beliefs go I believe there is a category of shaheeds dying of diarrhea. A school of thought most certainly considers the suicidal bombers as Shaheed. Not only that, during the process of his brain washing he is   reverently and enviously applauded for being instrumental in bringing the coveted shahadat to scores of other people who would be killed in the  blast and will go straight to Jannah with him. As such, he will not only himself be a shaheed but will have the highest honour of making many other people also shaheed with him in the process!! Surprisingly, shahadat is not the domain of the momins of the Pakistan armed forces only. Indians call their Hindu and Sikh soldiers also as Shaheed and have many national songs eulogizing their shahadat !!!

Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)