Social media was abuzz with reports of Sheikh Rohale Asghar being denied entry into Islamabad Club on Wednesday. The discourse quickly spiraled towards the lingering effects of colonialism and the interplay of wealth and cultural symbols that divide society. At least one segment on a news channel was dedicated to the topic. But it turns out the story is not true.
“I never went to the Islamabad Club, I’m not even a member,” Rohail Asghar told Aaj Digital. He added that he had created scenario in a committee meeting to ask a club official some questions about dress code. What turned a question into a social media storm was probably a case of misreporting.
So here is what actually happened. The secretary of the Islamabad Club appeared infront of the Public Accounts Committee in the National Assembly, which met under Noor Alam Khan on January 17. As the discussion turned from an alleged misappropriation of funds by government to the club’s dress code, Rohail Asghar who was clad in a dhoti at the time, asked him a question by giving an example.
“If I am not wearing a tie and coat when I go the club, will the club not serve food to me?” Rohail Asghar asked the official, “what if I’m wearing the dhoti I’m wearing now?” he added that “the British have left but left such remnants behind.”
The question based on an imaginary scenario turned into an actual event by the time it reached social media. One video of a Asghar in clad in a white dhoti and kurta was even circulated as the video of the event, but is actually from an old interview that you can find here.
“A reporter misreported what happened,” Asghar said. He also said that the dhoti in the tradition of the ihraam worn for Hajj can be considered a 1,400 year old outfit.
The dress code in the club is mainly confined to the dining hall. The club’s website says mentions “trouser and shirt; waist Coat on shilwar kameez’ as acceptable. It adds that “Slippers and open chappal are not allowed.” The committee gave the club’s administration 15 days to sort out its dress code and end any instances of discrimination. There is even a video of the committee’s chairman making a statement right after the meeting.
Tucked away in a corner of Islamabad with the Rawal lake on one side and Shakarparian on the other, the club has become a secluded spot for the elite of the city. Complete with a golf course, polo and cricket grounds, a library and movie theatre, the club offers leisure opportunities for members willing to pay a fee that is out of reach for most members of the city.
The President of Pakistan is the club’s patron but the club’s website says that it does not receive ‘any Government grants/PSDP funding etc.’ The club is run by an administrator appointed by the fderal government. Dr. Syed Tauqir Hussain Shah, who is also the principal secretary to the prime minister, is the current administrator.
The club was embroiled in a similar controversy in 2019 when then Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered signs banning entry of domestic staff clubs throughout Islamabad, including Islamabad club.
Minister Shaheryar Afridi had tweeted that such signs reeked of a ‘colonial mindset’ and boundaries based on ‘wealth’ should be removed.
