Ahmad Nurani | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Ahmad Noorani in 1985 | |
| President of theMuttahida Majlis-e-Amal | |
| In office 9 October 2002 – 11 December 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| Succeeded by | Qazi Hussain Ahmad |
| Member ofNational Assembly of Pakistan | |
| In office 14 April 1972 – 7 March 1977 | |
| Constituency | NW-134 (Karachi-VII) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Shah Ahmad Nurani Siddiqi (1926-10-01)1 October 1926 Meerut,India |
| Died | 11 December 2003(2003-12-11) (aged 77) Islamabad,Pakistan |
| Resting place | Abdullah Shah Ghazi Mausoleum |
| Citizenship | Pakistan |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Political party | Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan 1970–2002 |
| Relations | Fazlur Rahman Ansari (brother-in-law) |
| Children | Owais |
| Parent | Muhammad Abdul Aleem Siddiqi |
| Residence(s) | Islamabad, Pakistan |
| Alma mater | Allahabad University Darul-Uloom Arabia,Meerut |
Philosophy career | |
| Era | 20th Century |
| Region | Islamic world |
| School | Sunni (Barelvism) |
Main interests | Islamic philosophy Modernity |
Notable ideas | Revival ofShia-Sunni relations |
Shah Ahmad Nurani Siddiqi[a] (1 October 1926 – 11 December 2003) was a Pakistani Islamic scholar and politician. He was the founder and first president of theMuttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) from 2002 until his death in 2003. He was served as the president ofJamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (JUP) from the 1970s until his death.
The JUP was the mainBarelvi political party of Pakistan until the establishment ofTehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan in 2015.[1] Siddiqi was a co-founder of theWorld Islamic Mission.[2][3][4]
Active in politics since the 1970s, agitating against military dictatorGeneral Zia-ul-Haq in the 1980s, and after disassociating from politics during most of the 1990s, he made a notable comeback after rigorously opposing the regime ofPresidentPervez Musharraf and further forming anultra–conservative alliance for joint opposition to the regime.[5] Assuming thepresidency ofMuttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), he was known to use tough rhetoric againstMusharraf and formed a public support againstMusharraf's policies in the country.[6]
Ahmad Nurani was born inMeerut,British India (nowUttar Pradesh,India), into anUrdu-speakingSiddiquiShaikh family on 31 March 1926 (17 Ramadan 1344).[5] His father,Abdul Aleem Siddiqi was also an Islamic scholar and had accompanied him onIslamic missionary tours to various parts of the world in his early youth.[7]
He received his BA degree inArabic language from theAllahabad University, and certified from theDarul-Uloom in Meerut inIslamic jurisprudence. He became ahafiz-ul-Quran at the age of eight.[2] His family moved toKarachi,Sindh, Pakistan after thepartition ofIndia.[5]
He established himself as Islamic scholar and worked in the developing theIslamic philosophy as well as helping found theWorld Islamic Mission, based inMecca,Saudi Arabia in 1972.[2]
He has been described as apolyglot who "was conversant with 17 languages and eloquent in six,Urdu,Arabic,English,Persian,French andSwahili."[8]
Nurani was elected as member of theNational Assembly from ConstituencyNW-134 (Karachi-VII) after participating ingeneral elections held in 1970 onJamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan's platform.
The second time he was elected as MNA from ConstituencyNA-167 (Hyderabad-II) in1977 Pakistani general election. Since then, his influence onnational politics further grew and he became aSenator in 1980s.[2]
Nurani took stand against the martial law regime ofMuhammad Zia-ul-Haq. His party was one of the founding members ofPakistan National Alliance (PNA) formed on January 10, 1977 and “Pakistan Awami Ittihad” (PAI) in 1988.
During Zia's regime, he raised his voice for the rehabilitation of the political parties, restoration of the judicial powers and finishing the military courts, elimination of the Martial law; and announcement of the election schedule. He was also guiding force for the formation of another electoral alliance Islami Jamhuri Mahaz in May 1999. Through his efforts, Nurani, formed an alliance of six religious, political parties, named as the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA), came into being in 2001. He was chosen as its founding President.[9][10]
Nurani argued with ideologies such as theDeobandism andWahhabism and most strictly with theQadiani (the cursed ones). He spent his scholarly life in promotingBarelvism andAhmad Raza Khan as theMujaddid (Islamic reviver) of the 14th Islamic century.[3]
On 11 December 2003 (17 Shawwal 1424), Nurani died when he was preparing to leave his residence for the Parliament House to address a press conference along with other opposition leaders at noon.The 78-year old religious scholar was struck by a fatal cardiac seizure at his residence in Islamabad, his assistants said.[2][5] The funeral prayer was done inNishtar Park on Friday and he was buried at the foot of his mother in the graveyard situated in the premises of theAbdullah Shah Ghazi Mausoleum in Karachi.[2]
Pervez Musharraf expressed profound grief in a condolence message in which he paid tribute to Nurani for his "great services for Pakistan and his tremendous contributions to national politics. MMA General SecretaryMaulana Fazal-ur-Rehman described the passing away of Nurani as a "great loss for the whole nation." Fazal said Nurani was a "moderate, polite and kind person and due to his qualities he was elected as chief of the united religious front.[5][6][4]
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