Muslim Gazette
Muslim Gazette was an Urdu-language weekly newspaper published from the province of Odisha in 1937. Edited and founded by Syed Fazlur Rahman Qasmi, the paper ran for a short period in 1937 and is represented today by a small set of surviving issues that have been used as a source for the history of Urdu journalism in Odisha.
History
The Muslim Gazette was launched in June 1937 from Cuttack, Odisha and was printed at Lakshmi Narayan Press in Cuttack. The first extant issue is dated 22 Rabi al-awwal 1356 AH, and the available run of the newspaper consists of thirteen issues covering dates from 3 June 1937 to 27 August 1937; the precise date on which publication ceased remains unclear. According to Amjad Najmi, the paper was initiated in the same year that Odisha became a separate province after its separation from the Bihar and Orissa Province, and was brought out by Syed Fazlur Rahman Qasmi as a commemorative effort marking that event.
The paper appeared on eight pages of newsprint and sold for one anna per issue. Its editor, Syed Fazlur Rahman Qasmi, came from a family active in Urdu literary journalism; his elder brother, Maulana Syed Muhammad Umar, had earlier published the monthly Al-Mansur.
Editorial stance and content
Surviving issues indicate the Muslim Gazette published local, regional and international news, editorials, appeals related to Muslim communal concerns, reports on the activities of the Indian National Congress and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, as well as literary items and notices. Contemporary coverage shows the paper supported the national movement and advocated social, educational and economic improvement for Muslims of Odisha. The paper frequently urged readers to support Urdu education and suggested the establishment of public Urdu libraries across the province.
Circulation and difficulties
The Muslim Gazette had a modest circulation and relied on limited financial resources. Its publishers repeatedly appealed to readers and patrons for small weekly donations to sustain printing costs. By August 1937 the paper was in financial distress and soon thereafter ceased regular publication; the precise termination date has not been firmly established. Surviving copies were reported to be in a fragile state until later editorial and archival efforts preserved their contents.
Preservation and later use
Thirteen extant issues passed through several private hands before being edited and compiled in recent years. Khawar Naqeeb edited and published the surviving material in a 2023 work that collected the available issues and provided context on Urdu journalism in British India and Odisha in particular. The preserved pages are cited by scholars as primary evidence for the emergence of Urdu periodical journalism in Odisha.