Mohammad-Ali Rajai was born on 15 June 1933 inQazvin, Iran.[1] His father, a shopkeeper named Abdolsamad, died when he was four years old.[2][3] Rajai grew up in Qazvin and moved to Tehran in the late 1940s. He joined theAir Force at age sixteen or seventeen.[4][5] In 1959, he graduated fromTarbiat Moallem University with a degree in education, later working as a teacher of mathematics.[3][5]
Following theIranian Revolution in 1979, Rajai left the Freedom Movement and was appointed theminister of education in anInterim Government led byMehdi Bazargan.[1] Using his newfound power, Rajai sought the rapidIslamization of Iranian schools by banning the teaching of English, removing courses thought to be "non-Islamic", closing universities to prevent potential student dissent, and firing teachers with whom he disagreed.[2][5]
On 30 August 1981, Rajai held a meeting of Iran's Supreme Defence Council along with Bahonar. Witnesses later stated that a trusted aide brought a briefcase into the conference room, set it between the two leaders, and then left. A short period later, another person opened the case, triggering a hidden bomb that set the room ablaze, leading to the deaths of Rajai, Bahonar, and six other officials.[8] The attack occurred two months after theHaft-e Tir bombing. Iranian officials identifiedMEK operativeMassoud Keshmiri as the culprit, though others allege the bombing was by political rivals within Rajai's political party.[9][10] He is buried inBehesht-e Zahra cemetery.
Rajai's political programs were based on a form of constitutional law that included a position of privilege for Islam. He insisted that those in control of the state must be Muslim, emphasized theVelayat-e Faqih, and believed it essential that the government cooperate with institutions such as theIslamic Revolutionary Guard andIslamic Revolutionary Court. He tried during his tenure to create a consistent government.[11]
^Katzman, Kenneth (2001). "Iran: The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran". In Benliot, Albert V. (ed.).Iran: Outlaw, Outcast, Or Normal Country?. Nova Science Publishers. p. 101.ISBN978-1-56072-954-9.
^Ali Ahmadi (1384). "How created a consistent government".Gozaresh. pp. 14–18.
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