Azizul Haque | |
|---|---|
আজিজুল হক | |
.jpg) Shaykh Ul Hadith Allamah Azizul Haque | |
| Title | FirstAmeerBangladesh Khelafat Majlis -Shaykhal-Hadith[1] |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1919[2] |
| Died | 8 August 2012(2012-08-08) (aged 92–93) Azimpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh |
| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Children | Mamunul Haque Mahfuzul Haque |
| Citizenship | British Indian (1919–1947) Pakistani (1947–1971) Bangladeshi (1971–2012) |
| Main interest(s) | |
| Notable work(s) |
|
| Occupation | Muhaddith |
| Relatives | Nurul Haque Miah (son-in-law) |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Movement | Deobandi |
| Muslim leader | |
| Teacher | Shamsul Haque Faridpuri Hafezzi Huzur Abdul Wahhab Pirji Zafar Ahmad Usmani Shabbir Ahmad Usmani Muhammad Idris Kandhlawi |
Influenced
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Azizul Haque (Bengali:আজিজুল হক) (1919 - 8 August 2012)[2], also known as by hisepithetShaykh al-Hadith[3] was a BangladeshiIslamic scholar, politician, writer, and translator. He is the founder ofBangladesh Khelafat Majlis[4] and first Bangali translator ofSahih al-Bukhari. He was vice chancellor ofJamia Rahmania Arabia.[5]
Azizul Haque was born in 1919, into aBengali Muslim family ofQadis in the village of Bhirich Khan,Louhajang,Bikrampur,Bengal Presidency (now inMunshiganj District,Bangladesh). His father was Haji Ershad Ali,[6] and Haque lost his mother when he was only 4–5 years old. He was then raised by his maternal grandmother in the nearby village of Kalma, where he began his initial primary education at the local mosque.[7]
At the age of 7, Haque moved toBrahmanbaria with his father, who had a business there. Haque enrolled at theJamia Islamia Yunusia, where he spent four years studying underShamsul Haque Faridpuri,Hafezzi Huzur andAbdul Wahhab Pirji, who his father had close connections with. His father placed Haque under the care of Faridpuri.[8] In 1931, he followed Faridpuri to the newly established Ashraful Uloom Madrasa in Bara Katara,Dhaka where he studied for twelve years. From 1940 to 1941, Haque studied books such asTafsir al-Baydawi,Jami' al-Tirmidhi andSahih al-Bukhari underZafar Ahmad Usmani. Haque had completed his Master of Arts inHadith studies in Ashraful Uloom.[9]
He travelled toNorth India in 1943 for furtherIslamic studies. He started off at theJamiah Islamiah Talimuddin inDabhel nearSurat, Gujarat where he studied underShabbir Ahmad Usmani. Finally he went toDarul Uloom Deoband inSaharanpur where he studiedTafsir, pursuing a degree fromMuhammad Idris Kandhlawi. Haque was fluent in theBengali,Urdu andArabic languages.[9]
Haque began his career as a teacher in the Ashraful Uloom Madrasa in Bara Katara,Dhaka in 1946 and continued to 1952. He then taughtSahih al-Bukhari and other Islamic texts at theJamia Qurania Arabia inLalbagh Thana until 1985.[9]
In 1978, he played a key role in establishing theBangladesh Qawmi Madrasah Education Board, becoming its general secretary.[10] In 1979, he taughtSahih al-Bukhari in the Department ofIslamic Studies ofUniversity of Dhaka as a visiting professor and served there for three years.[11]
In 1986, Haque established aMadrasah called Jamiah Muhammadia Arabia nearMohammadpur, Dhaka.[12] In 1988, he purchased a piece of land nearSaat Masjid in Mohammadpur and transferred theJamiah Muhammadia Arabia there renaming it to Jamia Rahmania Arabia Dhaka. For a long tenure, he was the chief Sheikhul Hadith of this institution. He served as the principal ofJamia Shariyyah Malibagh, Dhaka.[citation needed]
He served as the Amir of theIslami Oikya Jote andBangladesh Khelafat Majlish.[13][1] He was present at the launch ofHarkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh in theNational Press Club of Bangladesh in 1992.[14]
As a result of the 1992Demolition of the Babri Masjid inAyodhya, India, Azizul Haque led the Khelafat Majlis in a march from Dhaka to Ayodhya on 2 January 1993, demanding its restoration. They reached the border nearKhulna, where theGovernment of Bangladesh blocked off the boundaries and suppressed the march. In the same year, Azizul Haque declared on behalf of the Majlis that India's prime ministerNarasimha Rao should not visit India and gave orders to besiege thenational airport. He was coincidentally arrested for this reason on 9 April 1993, though he was later released on 8 May 1993.[15]
He also served as the chairman of the Shari'ah Board ofAl-Arafah Islami Bank Limited.[citation needed]
In 2009, Azizul Haque and otherBengali Muslimscholars wrote a statement to the Prime Minister,Sheikh Hasina, condemning terrorism and militancy committed in the name ofIslam.[16]
Azizul Haque died on 8 August 2012 at his home inAzimpur, Dhaka at the age of 94. He was survived by his wife, eight daughters and five sons.[1] His son,Mamunul Haque, is a leader ofHefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh.[17]Sheikh Hasina expressed shock and highlighted Haque's contributions to theBangladeshi society.[13] PresidentZillur Rahman and opposition leaderBegum Khaleda Zia expressed condolences.[18]
