Hyderabad, June 15 -- He devoted more than half a century of his life to public causes, educational institutions and community service. Yet, when a condolence meeting was held to mourn his passing barely a fortnight after his death, fewer than fifty people turned up.

The sparse attendance at the meeting spoke volumes-not merely about the loss of one man, but about the fleeting nature of public memory and the ease with which society forgets its benefactors.

The condolence meeting, organised at the conference hall of Jamia Masjid Aliya, Gunfoundry, in memory of senior advocate and Masjid Committee president Ghulam Yezdani, witnessed thin attendance. The absence of a larger gathering was not lost on the organisers or the speakers. In fact,...