This paper presents an argument about why modern trends of literary criticism have not taken roots in Urdu. It begins by highlighting the fact that the subject of Linguistics and premises of Modern Philosophy have not been properly introduced in Urdu. Therefore the modern trends of criticism developed in these disciplines have not found a way in the mainstream of Urdu literary or critical traditions. Hence even though the new criticism in Urdu is loaded with the names of De Saussure, Levi Strauss, Roland Barthes,  Jonathan Culler, Derrida, Lacan, Terry Eagleton  etc., the ideas of modern critical theory have neither been properly understood, nor propagated and  absorbed in Urdu. Also these names have been used by modern Urdu critics merely to project and promote their own narrow ideologues. The effort to popularize their views has not succeeded merely because it has not been seriously made at all. Consequently, any reference to these theories appears to be merely a cheap trick to win attention or superficial at beast.