Allama Iqbal statue from Lahore’s park turns into meme material

The recently erected huge, milky statue of the national poet Allama Iqbal is garnering massive recognition on social media, since the moment it came into public eye today, however for some hilarious reasons. When some citizens are reaching out the authorities to have it removed straightaway, the others have successfully transformed it into a brandish troll. And, with that being said, #AllamaIqbal is currently trending on Pakistani twitter.

People of Punjab, Lahore to be precise, seem to have a thing for effigies and sculptures, and often create them as a heartfelt tribute or an act of gratitude. However, the government or higher authorities are usually involved in such services to ensure the aptness of the craft at hand.

UPDATE: Two PHA officials suspended over Allama Iqbal statue in Lahore.

But, the case is somewhat different with the latest statue of Allama Iqbal, erected in a park of Gulshan e Iqbal area, Lahore.

The snowy colored carving was shaped by some local gardeners of the square, as a display of their admiration to the poet of the East. With small budget and resources available, the devotees had erected and unveiled the honorable statue of Allama Iqbal on the 73^rd birthday of Pakistan.

Twitter Reactions

Although the sculpture was created by the purest of hearts, it did not fit well with majority of the population, owing to its funny, quirky appearance that does not even resemble the legendary Urdu poet. Hence, the citizens quickly jumped to the twitter handle, criticizing the artwork and requesting the authorities to get rid of it as early as possible.

In addition to all this hatred, some users were kind enough to appreciat the hard work and sweet gesture of the poor gardeners who created the statue of Allama iqbal, prioritizing the efforts rather than the outcome.

And then there were some twitter ninjas who simply turned it into a meme material.  

Statue of Allama Iqbal to be taken down by Punjab Government

Soon after the social media uproar regarding the controversial figure intensified, PTI official Yasir Gillani stepped in, as he cleared the air through his tweet.

“Dear, this is prepared by maalis at their own, they made it in sheer love for Iqbal and to pay homage from their heart. Authority didn’t approve or even paid a single penny for it.

“WE WILL ADDRESS IT but can anyone see from maalis eye’s, their love and their عقیدت,” -came from Gillani.

Gillani tried to highlight the labors of the gardeners in creating the sculpture. However, the patriotic citizens didn’t move an inch, and remained strong minded on the calls for elimination of the statue.

Consequently, following the social media backlash, Punjab govt. has announced to eradicate the statue of Allama Iqbal.

City’s Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) announced Tuesday that it will be taken down and reinstalled after improvements are made to it.

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