بسم
الله الرحمن الرحيم
الصلاة
والسلام عليك يا سيدى يا رسول الله وعلى
آلك واصحابك يا سيدى يا نور الله
In
the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful
Prayers
and peace be upon you, my Master, Apostle of Allah
And
upon your Family and Companions, my Master, Light of Allah
Because
of the vastness and volume of Muslims in South Asia, or the Indian
Subcontinent (modern-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri
Lanka and the Maldives), numerous competing interpretations and sects
emerged from the Community whose heresies were appropriately
repudiated by our orthodox, Sunni Ulama. Ala Hadrat, Imam Ahmad Rida
Khan of Bareli, may Allah have mercy upon him, expended considerable
effort in refuting the falsehood of various heresies, such as the
naturalism of Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan, Rafidi Shi’ism, Qadianism
(Ahmadiyyah) and the tribulation of Wahhabism. He also clarified many
misconceptions among the Muslim of India, such as wrong perception of
the Ottomans being a Caliphate. The Ottomans were certainly a great
Muslim empire who offered great service for Islam and were at one
point in history a symbol of Sunni Muslim power and glory. Yet the
Khilafat Movement was incorrect to consider the Ottomans a Caliphate.
Likewise, the Khilafat Movement made a fatal blunder in joining hands
with Mohandas Gandhi and the Indian National Congress to present a
political unity with Hindus against British rule and policies. Ala
Hadrat was very insightful and wise in condemning any sort of
political cooperation with the Hindus and their political parties
such as the Congress, instead calling for aloofness from the
dangerous movement of Indian nationalism. Regrettably, the Ulama of
Deoband did not have the firasah and wisdom of Ala Hadrat, may Allah
have mercy upon him. The Ulama of Deoband, especially as represented
by Husain Ahmad Madani and his Jami’at Ulama-i-Hind (JUH), were
extremely stupid and naive when it came to political matters. After
the failure of the Khilafat Movement they continued their attachment
to the Congress, meaning cooperation with the Hindus. They opposed
the insightful Two Nation Theory and instead advocated for “composite
nationalism”. It is to the credit of a minority within the Deoband
circle, led by Ashraf Ali Thanwi and Shabbir Ahmad Usmani, that they
dissented from the policy of Husain Ahmad Madani and the JUH. The
dissenting faction of Deoband which favored the Pakistan Movement and
defended the Two Nation Theory ought to be acknowledged and
appreciated for their bold stance and for expressing ghayrah for the
Muslims. Yet it must be said that the present pitiful and precarious
state of the Muslims in the Republic of India is in part owed to the
stupidity and lack of foresight of the JUH and the Ulama of Deoband
in general. The descendants of family of Husain Ahmad Madani, today
represented by Arshad Madani and Mahmud Madani, are now perturbed by
the increasing Hinduization of India, coinciding with its abandonment
of secularism, as exemplified in such anti-Muslim legislation as the
Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024. One of the dangers of this proposed
amendment is that it seeks to weaken the position of Sunni orthodoxy
by empowering non-Sunni elements, such as the Shi’ah, the Bohra and
Aga Khani communities, but also by mandating representation of women
and non-Muslims. Now too are Mosques and Madaris, many of which are
managed by the Ulama of Deoband, endangered. The JUH totally failed
to anticipate the rise of Hindutva and the real potential for the
establishment of a Hindu Rashtra where Muslims would become second
class citizens or worse. Now the condition of Muslims in India has
fallen below that of the Dalits or Achchuts (untouchables). As a
matter of fact, these Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
(Adivasis) have been taken in by the Hindutva narrative and are
filling the ranks of the RSS. We see that the various communities of
India, once at odds with each other, have come together in acceptance
of the Hindutva narrative to the exclusion of the Muslims.
Coming
back to Ala Hadrat, may Allah have mercy upon him, another great
service he did for the Muslims was unveiling the problem of the
Hijrat Movement and the idea that the country of India was
“Darul-Harb”. Most of those who held this theory did so for
greed, as they wished to take advantage of certain concessionary
rulings of the Hanafi school with regard to Muslims in Darul-Harb,
such as it being lawful for them to consume usury. But Ala Hadrat
spoke out against this falsehood motivated by greed. He established
that the country of India was not a place of war or Jihad, including
against the ruling British authorities. Nor was it obligated or even
advisable for the Muslims of India to abandon the country and
emigrate to Afghanistan. In conclusion, one realizes without any
obfuscation that Ala Hadrat was truly motivated by his love for the
Muslims, for the Millat, and that all of his views and verdicts were
intended to protect Muslims from both spiritual and political harm.
One must also credit the Sajjada Nashins of the Sunni Muslim
community for their political foresight in working for
materialization of Pakistan. Pir Mehr Ali Shah of Golra, may Allah
have mercy upon him, may also be termed Ala Hadrat for he rendered
incredible service for the welfare of the Millat. His son, Ghulam
Muhyuddin Gilani, known as Babu Ji, may Allah have mercy upon him,
played an important role in leading the Muslims of Punjab, especially
the northern Potohar region, in working for the realization of
Pakistan and cleansing the area of dangerous Sikh infidels.
With
regard to the modern-day Republic of India, it is observed that the
hostile forces of Hindutva are utilizing the munafiqs
(hypocrites), especially those in the garb of religious leaders, to
weaken the Muslims from within. Muslims should especially beware of
an individual known as Umar Ilyasi, a charlatan in the garb of an
Imam who serves as an instrument of the forces of Hindutva. He
attended the ceremony for the opening of the Ram Mandir built upon
the ruins of the demolished Babri Mosque.
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