Where streets have the name ‘Israel B Khan’

THE EDITOR: On behalf of the residents of former Deenah and Ganga Streets, Monte Grande, St Augustine, now renamed Israel B Khan Street and Israel B Khan Extension, I thank the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation for unanimously agreeing and voting for the name change. We also thank councillor J Lynn Roopnarine for the electoral district of Curepe/Pasea for moving our resolution to rename the streets after our well-known iconic president of the Criminal Bar Association of TT, who has contributed immensely to the development of the criminal justice system.

But the residents wish to pay homage to our hero Israel B Khan, not so much as a result of his unprecedented achievements and success as a criminal defence advocate, but simply as someone who grew up in our little unknown district of Monte Grande/Pasea, St Augustine and is accepted throughout the country as a shining example of a civic-minded person.

I have known Israel for more than 70 years. We grew up together in that little village. I attended Tunapuna Government Elementary School and Israel the Tunapuna Hindu School, which was a stone’s throw away from my school.

There are many aspects of his life and personality that the general public will be totally unaware of, and I wish to give the population a glimpse of this kindhearted, fair and fearless man, who is my dear friend.

In the period 1987-1991, I served as a councillor for the electoral district of Curepe/Pasea at the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation, then known as the St George East County Council. Israel was an alderman in that very council which has honoured him with the renaming of the streets. He served with distinction.

And not many people will know that he gave his monthly stipends to the needy people of the St George East district for the four years he served as an alderman. Not a red cent was taken for his service in the council.

And the general public is unaware that in recent times he forwent taking rental fees to the tune of $540,000 from Pan Trinbago for a Port of Spain building he owns when Pan Trinbago was in financial trouble. And throughout his life he gave his time, money and energy to people who were in need. My childhood friend is a true patriot of this country.

Recently, the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) honoured Israel, together with six other legal luminaries chosen from the HWLS pool of graduates of 50 years as “its most distinguished and prestigious graduates who by their remarkable achievements and dedication to the practice of law have inspired countless attorneys in the Caribbean.”

The HWLS has been in existence for 50 years. And Israel has been teaching law at the HWLS for the past 37 years to present. He is the most decorated criminal defence advocate in TT, if not the entire Caribbean.

So the residents of Monte Grande/Pasea, St Augustine, especially those of the newly named streets, namely Israel B Khan Street and Israel B Khan Extension, would like to know why the powers that be did not include him, as they did with Russell Martineau, SC, for the award of the ORTT. And we say, like Martineau, SC, Israel also deserves the distinguished award of ORTT.

But say what, we celebrate Israel’s contribution to the development of the criminal justice system and the rule of law, with two streets named after him. Israel B Khan Street and Israel B Khan Extension.

RAGOONATH CHABOO

via e-mail

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