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Abul Mahasin Muhammad Sajjad
Office 2nd General Secretary of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind








Predecessor Ahmad Saeed Dehlavi
Successor Abdul Haleem Siddiqi[1]















Abul Mahasin Muhammad Sajjad[2][3][4][5] (1880 – 23 November 1940) was an Indian Islamic scholar who was one of the most influential ulemas of the 20th century.[6] Sajjad was a founder of Anjuman-Ulama-i-Bihar, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, and Imarat-i-Sharia.[7] A leader in the Indian independence movement, Abul Mahasin Muhammad Sajjad participated in the Non-cooperation Movement, Khilafat Movement, and Civil Disobedience Movement; he opposed the partition of India and championed the concept of composite nationalism. He also founded the Muslim Independent Party in 1935 to represent Muslims in Bihar who were disillusioned with Congress and the Muslim League. The Muslim Independent Party formed the government in Bihar in 1937. Yunus, the party president, became the chief minister of Bihar on 1 April 1937.[8][9]

Early life and education

Muhammad Sajjad was born in the Panhessa village in the Sheikhpura district of the Bihar Province in Colonial India.[10] His father was Hussain Baksh who died when he was only 4 years old.[11]

Sajjad's elder brother was the revered Sufi saint Sufi Ahmad Sajjad who lived until 1948. Sufi Ahmad Sajjad's Mazar is located near a mosque in the village where Urs of the great Sufi Saint is celebrated every year on the 27th day of Muharram. The shrine's current Sajjada Nashin (hereditary administrator) is the saint's grandson Pir Syed Shah Mohammad Ziauddin (born 1953).[7]

Sajjad started studying at Madrasa Islamiya in Bihar, and then studied at Madrasa Subhaniya in Allahabad for about six years. His major teachers include Abdul Kāfi. He graduated in 1323 AH.[10] Sajjad completed his studies in Bihar Sharif, Deoband, and Allahabad.[7]

Career

He later returned to Bihar Sharif and Allahabad, to teach theology, as well as at Gaya.[7] In 1917, Sajjad founded the Anjuman-Ulama-i-Bihar and also became one of the founders of Jamiyat al-Ulama-i-Hind.[7] He served as the secretary of Imarat-i-Sharia, which he helped found.[7]

A leader in the Indian independence movement, Sajjad took part in the Non-cooperation movement, Khilafat Movement and Civil Disobedience Movement.[7] He was a proponent of Hindu-Muslim unity and was a leader in the hartals that boycotted the Simon Commission.[7] He along with Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi, Shaukat Ali, Begum Md. Ali, Azad Subhani, Abdul Majid Daryabadi and others represented the Central Khilafat Committee at the All Parties Conferences and All Muslim Parties Conferences on Nehru Report.[12] He opposed the partition of India and the separatist campaign of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.[8] He established Anwarul Ulum Madrasa in Gaya.[7]

Sajjad authored the Fatwa Tark-e-Mawalat, the religious edict on boycotting the British goods, on 8 September 1920. It was signed by 500 Muslim scholars and issued from the Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind.[13] He was appointed the general secretary of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind on 13 July 1940.[1] He would earlier serve as the working general secretary in absence of Ahmad Saeed Dehlavi.[1]

Death

Sajjad died on 23 November 1940.[10]

File:Abul mahasin Mohammad sajjad (cropped).jpg
Inscription on the grave of Abul Mahasin Muhammad Sajjad

See more

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Tehreek Azadi-e-Hind Mai Muslim Ulama aur Awaam ka Kirdar{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Deeni Kitab Ghar(2014)
  2. Islamic Law on Trial: Contesting Colonial Power in British India{{#if:Siddiqui|, Siddiqui}. Univ of California Press(2025-04-15). ISBN 978-0-520-39639-5
  3. South Asian Studies{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Centre for South Asian Studies, University of the Punjab(1993)
  4. Public Life in Muslim India, 1850-1947: A Compendium of Basic Information on Political, Social, Religious, Cultural and Educational Organizations Active in Pre-partition India{{#if:Aziz|, Aziz}. Vanguard(1992). ISBN 978-969-402-119-5
  5. 100 Great Muslim Leaders of the 20th Century{{#if:Alam|, Alam}. Institute of Objective Studies(2005). ISBN 978-81-85220-06-2
  6. Role of Muslims in the National Movement, 1912-1930: A Study of Bihar{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Mittal Publications(1987). ISBN 978-81-7099-033-8
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 Government and Politics in Colonial Bihar, 1921-1937{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Mittal Publications(1 January 2004). ISBN 978-81-7099-979-9
  8. 8.0 8.1 The real culprits behind India's Partition. Rediff(24 May 2018). Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  9. The forgotten story of two Maulanas who mocked Jinnah's idea of Pakistan. Scroll.in(6 September 2016). Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Tazkirah Mashāhīr-e-Hind: Karwān-e-Rafta{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Darul Muallifeen
  11. Hayāt-e-Abul Mahāsin{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Jāmia Rabbāni Manorwa Sharīf
  12. Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi: Political activist from Bihar. youngbites.com(1 July 2017).
  13. Jamī'at-i Ulamā par ek tārīk̲h̲ī tabṣirah{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}

Bibliography

  • Hadhrat Mawlāna Abul Mahasin Muḥammad Sajjad{{#if:Nadwi|, Nadwi}. Abjad Publishers(2018)
  • Hayāt-e-Abul Mahāsin{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Jāmia Rabbāni Manorwa Sharīf

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