Khadim Hussain Rizvi | |
|---|---|
خادم حسین رضوی | |
 | |
| 1stAmeer ofTehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan | |
| In office 1 August 2015 – 19 November 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Saad Hussain Rizvi |
| Personal life | |
| Born | (1966-05-22)22 May 1966 |
| Died | 19 November 2020(2020-11-19) (aged 54) |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Children | 6, includingSaad Hussain Rizvi |
| Political party | Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan |
| Alma mater | Jamia Nizamia Rizvia |
| Occupation | Preacher, leader, Islamic scholar |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Founder of | Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Creed | Maturidi |
| Movement | Barelvi |
Khadim Hussain Rizvi (Urdu:خادم حسین رضوی; 22 May 1966[1] – 19 November 2020[2]) was aPakistaniIslamic scholar and the founder andAmir ofTehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan,[3] a religiopolitical organization founded in 2015, known to protest against any change toPakistan's blasphemy law.[4]
Fluent inUrdu,Punjabi,Arabic andPersian, he was known for his speeches in the defense of the Islamic prophet,Muhammad, and apart from theQuran andhadith, for heavily quoting the poetry ofAhmad Raza Khan andMuhammad Iqbal, whom he considered to be his main influences.[5]
Khadim Hussain Rizvi was born in 1966, into aPunjabi MuslimAwan family[6] inPindi Gheb,Attock District,Punjab. His brother, Ameer Hussain, is a retired Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) fromPakistan Army.[7]
He startedhafiz class inJhelum. Further, he took admission inJamia Nizamia Rizvia, Lahore.[3] He was aHafiz-e-Quran andSheikh-ul-Hadith.[8][9] He deliveredFriday sermons at Lahore's Pir Makki Masjid while in thePunjab Auqaf and Religious Affairs Department.[3] He was wheelchair user from 2007, ever since an accident nearTalagang as the driver of his vehicle fell asleep while driving fromRawalpindi toLahore.[10][3]
In 2017, he founded a political party calledTehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a political front for Tehreek Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah (TLYP).[11] TLP came into existence after the hanging ofMumtaz Qadri, who assassinatedSalmaan Taseer, the Governor of Punjab, for opposing theblasphemy laws and subsequently rose to fame. During the assassination of the Governor, Rizvi was serving as an auqaf official in thePunjab government. Rizvi had justified the assassination on the pretext that Taseer had termed theblasphemy law as a "black law". He was served warning notices to cease and desist from spreading his views in favour of blasphemy laws but his refusal to do so led to his removal from public service.[3]
After his removal, Rizvi had more opportunity to preach his views. He travelled across the country to build support forSection 295-C of thePakistan Penal Code, which deals with blasphemy committed againstIslamic ProphetMuhammad. He also spoke out for the release ofMumtaz Qadri; his persistent advocacy earned him the nickname of "blasphemy activist" in religious circles.[3]
On 6 November 2017, Rizvi organized a long march fromLahore toIslamabad to press for the resignation of the Law Minister Mr.Zahid Hamid who belongs to PML(N) regarding an alleged ill-motive change and favouringAhmadis, in the "2017 Election of Pakistan" bill .[12][13][14] Rizvi soon began receiving support from public, other religious political parties and other segments of society, making way for mushroom growth of protests nationwide.[3][15] The general public took the same demand of resignation of the Law Minister to the streets.[3] Thereafter, total shutdown began, and the government ultimately responded with a forced shutdown of all news channels, followed by blocking social media networks, to contain the situation and the flow of information. This created mayhem and confusion in the cities of Karachi, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Lahore along with some others in Punjab. Finally, by late evening the army chief intervened and asked "both sides" to show restraint.[3]
On 31 October 2018, after eight years of detention and conviction by all the lower courts, aPakistani Christian woman,Asia Bibi, who was accused of blasphemy, was found innocent in a landmark Supreme Court verdict.[16] The final judgment said that one of Bibi's accusers violated theAshtiname of Muhammad, a "covenant made by Prophet Muhammad with Christians in the seventh century but still valid today".[17] JusticeAsif Saeed Khosa ruled that the two women who made accusations against Asia Bibi "had no regard for the truth" and that the claim that she blasphemed Muhammad in public was a "concoction incarnate".[18] The Supreme Court of Pakistan's ruling cited "material contradictions and inconsistent statements of the witnesses" that "cast a shadow of doubt on the prosecution's version of facts."[17]
This prompted the TLP, under the leadership of Rizvi to initiate demonstrations in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Multan. Clashes with police were reported. A leader of TLP, Muhammad Afzal Qadri, said all three Supreme Court judges "deserve to be killed". The Red Zone in the capital, Islamabad, where the Supreme Court is located, was sealed off by the police.[19] In public speeches, Rizvi demanded that Asia should be subjected to the punishment for blasphemy under Pakistan's penal code. He was quoted as saying, "Our sit-in will go on until the government accepts our demand" denying reports that the sit-in would soon be over.[4] He would later be arrested on 23 November 2018 along with otherTLP leaders[20] and then subsequently released on bail in May 2019[21]
In March 2019, a third year student at Bahawalpur's Government Sadiq Egerton College, Khateeb Hussain, stabbed associate professor Khalid Hameed in a fatal encounter.[22] Khateeb Hussain was in contact with Zafar Gillani, a lawyer and senior member of the TLP prior to the murder, and obtained approval for the act overWhatsApp. The supposed motive for the killing was blasphemous and insulting rhetoric towards Islam.
In 2018, Sareer Ahmed, the principal of Islamia College inCharsadda, was murdered by a 17-year-old student whom he had reprimanded for missing a number of classes. The student accused the professor of engaging in "blasphemy" for reprimanding him for skipping class to attend rallies held by the TLP.[23]
Both students stated that they were inspired by Rizvi.[24]
In 2020, Rizvi promoted protests on the release of thePakistani filmZindagi Tamasha. He accused film-makerSarmad Khoosat of blasphemy. The material he alleged to be blasphemous includes criticism ofulama and an alleged reference tobacha bazi.[25][26] Pakistani authorMohammed Hanif, who had seen both the censored and uncensored versions of the film, denied that any criticism of ulama was contained in the movie.[27]
On 19 November 2020, Rizvi was taken to the Farooq Hospital inAllama Iqbal Town area ofLahore after collapsing. Upon reaching the hospital, he was pronounceddead on arrival. He was later taken toShaikh Zayed Hospital, where he was declared dead at 8:48 pm. He had been ill for a few days and had been a wheelchair user for some time.[2][28] Rizvi's sonSaad Hussain Rizvi said that his father had started breathing again for five minutes after being declared dead, but stopped breathing again and finally died.[29] The funeral prayers were held at theMinar-e-Pakistan inLahore and were led by Saad. Rizvi was later buried inside Madrassah Abuzar Ghaffari, associated with Rehmatul Lil Alameen mosque.[30]
A local official estimated that nearly 200,000 people attended the event.[31] Rizvi was suffering from fever and breathing problems before his death, but noCOVID-19 or autopsy tests were conducted.[30][32] Saad was appointed as the new ameer of TLP on 21 November.[33]
Some of the books he published include:[34]
Justice Asif Khosa, in a verdict widely praised for its courage and rigour, noted that the two sisters who accused Bibi "had no regard for the truth" and that the claim she smeared the prophet in public was "concoction incarnate".
