Rehna has set a world record for the maximum number of online certificates secured in a day, reports Cynthia Chandran.
Kottayam:
Rehna Shajahan was devastated when half a mark cost her an MCom seat at the Jamia Milia Islamia. However, she did not lose heart. The 25-year-old enrolled for two postgraduate courses online — a master’s in social work and a diploma in guidance and counselling
She went on to prepare for the common admission test in management studies. As she cracked the CAT exam, Rehna was the only Malayali in her batch to get admission to the Jamia Millia Islamia for an MBA programme. And now, her zeal for study has earned her the world record for the maximum number of online certificates secured in a day — a whopping 81.
A resident of Illickal in Kottayam district, Rehna says her sister Nehla, whom she fondly calls ‘itha’, inspired her. Nehla got a lucrative job after pursuing her master’s in operational research from the London School of Economics and was always the studious one. “But I was determined to overcome the tag of an average student,” Rehna says.
When her sister got admission in Lady Sriram College, New Delhi, Rehna too wanted to try her luck in getting into a central university. She missed by a whisker and the rest is history. While pursuing the two post-graduate degrees simultaneously, she worked with an NGO, ‘Women’s Manifesto’, based in New Delhi that worked for women’s empowerment.
“When I cracked the CAT exam, I realised I can excel in studies. We need to try rather than just dream. I was keen on enhancing my repertoire by pursuing certification courses,” she says.
The previous world record for maximum online certificates received in one day was 75. She had recently quit her cushy job as a management professional in Dubai to attend to her father PM Shajahan, who has had a transplant surgery. For Rehna, her family comprising father, mother CM Rafiath, husband Ebrahim Riyaz, who is an IT engineer, and her sister is her priority. For that is the support system that gives her the courage and the inspiration to reach for the stars.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Cynthia Chandran / Express News Service / August 28th, 2022
Puttagram (North Arcot District, TAMIL NADU / NEW DELHI :
Moulana Syed Jalaluddin Umri
Renowned Islamic scholar Maulana Syed Jalaluddin Umri has passed away in Delhi at 8:30 pm Friday. He was 87.
Maulana Umri was president of Jamaat e Islami Hind for consecutive three terms( 2007-19).
Maulana Umri was born in 1935 in a village called Puttagram, District of North Arcot, Tamil Nadu, British India. He was a graduate of Jamia Darussalam, Oomerabad, Tamil Nadu. He recieved a master’s degree in Islamic Studies from Jamia Darussalam. He also received a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Aligarh Muslim University
Maulana Umri began his association with Jamaat-e-Islami Hind during his student years. After completing his studies, he dedicated himself to its research department. He officially became its member in 1956. He served as the city Ameer of Jama’at of Aligarh for a decade, and the editor of its monthly Zindagi-e-Nau for five years. Later, the Jama’at elected him to its All-India deputy Ameer, which he served for four consecutive terms (sixteen years). In 2007, the Jama’at’s Central Council of Representatives elected him its Ameer (Chief). He was again re-elected as Jama’at’s Ameer
Maulana Umri was elected as Ameer, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind for the fourth term (April 2015 – March 2019).
Jalaluddin Umri was widely-considered, among the Islamic circles of India, an authority on human rights and Muslim family system.
Jalaluddin Umri had written over two dozen books which were translated various languages:
Maroof wa Munkar
Islam ki Dawat
Musalman Aurat ke Huquuq aur Un par aeterazaat ka Jaiza (Rights of Muslim Women – A Critique of the Objections)
SeHat-o-marz aur Islam ki Taleemat
Islam meN khidmat-e-khalq ka Tasawwur (Social Service in Islam)
Inabat Ilallah
Sabeele Rab
Islam Aur Manav Adhikkar
State of Our Community and Nation and Our Responsibilities.
source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirrror / Home> Obituary / by Muslim Mirror Desk / August 26th, 2022
The book “Aligarh Muslim University: The Making of the Modern Indian Muslim” by Mohammed Wajihuddin sheds light on AMU and its role in determining where the Muslim community stands in modern-day India.
The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) completed a hundred years in December 2020. In December 1920, the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental (MAO) College founded by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan in 1877, was transformed into AMU. Sir Syed also established the All India Mohammedan Educational Conference to infuse the subcontinent’s Muslims with a spirit of modernism. This helped prepare the community, devastated in the aftermath of the Revolt of 1857, for new challenges.
Zakir Hussain, AMU alumnus, its former Vice-Chancellor and a former President of India, said over fifty years ago, ‘The way Aligarh participates in various walks of national life will determine the place of Muslims in India’s national life. The way India conducts itself towards Aligarh will determine largely, the form which our national life will acquire in the future.’
Read an excerpt from the book below.
With AMU turning a hundred, one is beholden to the MAO College Fund Committee’s first meeting on 10 February 1873. The fund committee was formed a year earlier, in 1872. Addressing the meeting, Syed Ahmad Khan’s son Syed Mahmood (1850–1903), had said: ‘I think what we mean to found is not a College but a university, and I hope the members will consent to my proposal that instead of the word “College”, the word “University” may be substituted.’
Since the formal opening of MAO College was getting delayed, the fund committee began a school called Madrasatul Uloom Musalmanan-e-Hind on 24 May 1875 at Aligarh. The school was a precursor to MAO College, which metamorphosed into AMU in 1920, and during whose foundation-stone-laying ceremony on 8 January 1877, presided over by Viceroy of India Lord Lytton, Sir Syed had observed:
… this is the first time in the history of Muhammedans of India that a college owes its establishment not to the charity or love of learning of an individual nor to the splendid patronage of a monarch, but to the combined wishes and the united efforts of a whole community. It has its origin in causes which the history of this country has never witnessed before.
So, what were the causes Sir Syed alluded to?
The large-scale killings and destruction in the wake of the failed 1857 Mutiny had unsettled Sir Syed, a judicial official in the East India Company. Muslims, who had borne the brunt of British repression heavily because the British held them responsible for the rebellion, had become fatalists. Irrationality, an obsession with obsolete and redundant social mores, rigidity in religious practices and a refusal to adapt to the new realities made them misfits in the era that the British Raj heralded. On close scrutiny, Sir Syed found that the reasons for the Muslims’ unfathomable desolation lay mainly in their educational backwardness and resistance to modern, scientific thinking. Therefore, he saw a panacea for the community in modern, scientific learning. He began thinking about ways and means to bring his community out of the stupendous self-pity it wallowed in.
A visit to England in 1869 enabled Sir Syed to see first-hand the education system of the West, including that at Oxford and Cambridge. With the dream of an Indian college modelled on Oxbridge before his eyes, he returned to India and set out to realize that cherished dream. He quit his job in Benares and made Aligarh, then a small mofussil town 100 miles off Delhi on the Delhi–Calcutta route, his home. Since Sir Syed had saved several family members, including women and children, of some senior British officials during the 1857 Mutiny from Indian rebels and was among the defenders of British rule in India, no roadblocks in his path to founding his college remained permanent.
In Aligarh, he set up a residential college which would become the heartbeat of Muslims, as well as of a large swathe of undivided India. Alongside the college project, Sir Syed began the herculean task of social and religious reform. For this he established the Tahzibul Akhlaq or Mohammedan Social Reformer, a magazine in Urdu, which began hitting at the obscurantist, obsolete views that fettered the community. Other magazines were specially published to counter the views spread by the Tahzibul Akhlaq. Some of Sir Syed’s religious views were unpalatable to the ulema and against accepted Islamic beliefs, and earned him the wrath of the orthodox elements in the community. He had to face the fury of fatwas. A maulvi even went all the way to Mecca to fetch a fatwa of kufr, declaring him an infidel. Sir Syed only chuckled at the serious drive to declare him a heretic, kafir or infidel, as it gave some of his tormentors an opportunity to visit Islam’s holiest places. Sir Syed’s debt to India in general and Muslims in particular lies not just in the college that he established but in the overall impact he left on the lives of Indians, especially Muslims.
Over 123 years after his death, Sir Syed is not considered a heretic, a naturi (one who propagated the belief that Islam is compatible with nature), a British stooge—epithets that some of his own community members hurled at him in his lifetime. Today, the orthodox ulema publicly say that Sir Syed, like any other person, is merely accountable to God for his lapses, and that his achievements and noble works outweigh his shortcomings and will pave his way to paradise.
Tomes have been penned on Sir Syed, MAO College, AMU and the movement Sir Syed and his associates like Mohsinul Mulk, Viqarul Mulk, Maulana Shibli Nomani, Maulana Zakaullah, Altaf Hussain Hali, Nazir Ahmad, and Chiragh Ali launched. This was called the Aligarh Movement, and it can only be described as the trigger for the Muslim renaissance in the subcontinent in late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It is easy to do a panegyric while evaluating the 100-year-long journey of a university which was born in the tumultuous times of India’s freedom struggle of the 1920s.
The circumstances in which Jamia Millia Islamia came up deserve some detailing. In 1920, Mahatma Gandhi gave a call for the boycott of government and government-aided schools and colleges. Muhammad Ali opposed MAO College as it was pro-government, since it received government grants. Gandhi, Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali tried to persuade the pro-government elements at Aligarh to join the nationalist movement and turn the college into a nationalist institution. The pro-government group at Aligarh opposed the presence of Gandhiji and the Ali brothers at the campus as they were trying to persuade students to join their movement. On 12 October 1920, Mahatma Gandhi addressed the students and left. But the real drama happened on 13 October, when the Ali brothers suddenly appeared at a meeting being held at the students’ union. Since they had been witness to Gandhiji being hooted and booed the previous day, the Ali brothers didn’t speak but said they had only come only to say goodbye to the students of their alma mater. And they wept too because they had seen Gandhiji being booed. Present there was also Zakir Hussain, who had done his MA in economics from AMU and was a part-time teacher at the university. Zakir Hussain had arrived from Delhi the same day; he was running a fever and didn’t want to speak. But he couldn’t hold back his own tears when he saw the Ali brothers weeping. He stood up and declared that he had decided to resign from his teaching assignment at MAO College and forego the scholarship being given to him. This tilted the balance and changed the mood. Many students joined him in boycotting government institutions. In his biography Dr Zakir Hussain, M. Mujeeb, a colleague and friend of the professor, says that Hussain went to Delhi, where he met Dr M.A. Ansari, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Muhammad Ali and many others and ‘assured them that a large number of teachers and students would leave the MAO College to join a national institution, if one was established. The leaders could ask for nothing better. On 29 October 1920, the Jamia Millia Islamia came into existence, and Maulana Mahmudul Hasan of Deoband delivered an address indicating its aims and ideals.’
Excerpted with permission from Aligarh Muslim University: The Making of the Modern Indian Muslim, Mohammed Wajihuddin, HarperCollins India. Read more about the book here and buy it here.
source: http://www.thedispatch.in / The Dispatch / Home> Book House / by Mohammed Wajihuddin / January 25th, 2022
The day of inauguration at the Jamiat-E-Ulema Day-Care Hospital on July 29. | Picture by arrangement
The hospital built by Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind (JUH) in Solapur, Maharashtra will provide healthcare services to poor patients at minimum rates regardless of caste, religion and creed.
Solapur (MAHARASHTRA) :
To meet the healthcare needs of poor and marginalized sections of society, Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind (JUH) has built a hospital in Solapur, Maharashtra.
Thrown open to patients in late July this year, Jamiat-E-Ulema Day-Care Hospital aims to make health facilities accessible to the poor and needy at a minimum charge. The hospital was inaugurated by Maharashtra state president of JUH Maulana Nadeem Siddique and attended by several eminent doctors and activists.
During his address, Maulana Nadeem said that “the hospital will provide excellent services to the poor patients at a very modest rate regardless of caste, religion and creed.”
“The OPD (outpatients department) and a medical store are functioning right now and the daycare facilities will begin soon,” the medical superintendent of the hospital Dr Farooque Mulla told TwoCircles.net.
Dr Farooque said that besides having an OPD, the hospital also administers ESG, and all types of blood tests at 30 to 50% discounted charges. “Specialist doctors also visit us to handle major cases.”
Talking about the need to open such a healthcare facility for the needy, JUH district president Maulana Ibrahim Qasmi told TwoCircles.net that “health and education are basic facilities which should be provided free of cost or lowest fees but unfortunately these two have become a lucrative business.”
“Considering the need of the hour we have started this hospital on a 5000 square feet plot,” he said.
Maulana Ibrahim said that “serving the poor is the aim of the hospital.”
“We are concentrating on the health and education sector by using all our resources. Our new venture will be to prepare students from marginalized communities for competitive exams by holding classes,” he said.
The infrastructure cost of the hospital was borne by collecting donations from people.
“We are doing all this by collecting donations from people. I must say that our city-based Biradaris (sections) have donated wholeheartedly,” Hasib Nadaf, General Secretary JUH told TwoCircles.net.
Nadaf said that during the pandemic, JUH set up a Covid Care centre at the same premises.
“This new multi-speciality hospital is our dream project,” he said.
Social activist Salahuddin Peerzade lauded this initiative by JUH.
“JUH always takes the lead in all humanitarian work. Everyone must come forward and help them to achieve their targets,” he said.
For Ashfaque Bagwan, a young political and social activist, the city of Solapur is in dire need of speciality hospitals, especially for women. “I frequently receive complaint calls from many women who face neglect at government hospitals. The fact is that poor patients always struggle to get their healthcare needs met,” he said.
Bhagwan added that he hoped the new hospital set up by the JUH will have a well-equipped gynaecology department.
Imran Inamdar is a Goa based journalist. He writes positive stories on education and healthcare. He tweets at @ImranIn6379033
source: http://www.twocircles.net / TwoCirlces.net / Home> Lead Story / by Imran Inamdar, TwoCircles.net / August 24th, 2022
Shama Parveen of Chanaud Panchayat of Dhanauti police station in Bihar’s Siwan district lost her father when she was three years old. Her mother joined as a helper in the Integrated Child Development Scheme called Anganwadi to support her family.
Shama’s grandfather Sheikh Mohammed Khurshid Alam, who stood by the family. He supported Shama’s decision not to get married at an early age which infuriated relatives, and they started distancing themselves from the family.
Today when Shama Parveen has cleared the examination of the Bihar State Public Service Commission and is all set to become an administrator, everyone is admitting her and the family’s perseverance.
Shama Praveen has secured 568th rank in the Bihar Public Service Commission’s Supply Inspector class examination. The result of the 66th Combined Competitive Examination of the Bihar state Public service commission was released last week in which 685 candidates were successful.
Shama’s success is all the more credible given the fact that he has achieved this success without joining a coaching center and through self-study and preparing at home. She says she would continue to study for clearing the UPSC and become a sub-divisional magistrate.
She was born in a village where even today family elders away from giving higher education to the girl child. Married soon. Shama says that her grandfather, who was a government teacher, took care of her brothers and sisters and supported them. “My Nana (grandfather) would say, “Study as much as you want to. Due to his enthusiasm, I did my graduation and later went to Allahabad for post-graduation.
When Shama Parveen completed her graduation, some of her relatives fixed her marriage to a close relative in 2014. Shama was upset and she refused to marry. “They fixed my marriage to a close relative and it wasn’t acceptable to me,” she said.
At this stage, her grandfather encouraged her to follow her dreams and not to worry. He told me that he will support her always “Your dreams are my dreams,” he told her.
All the criticism from society for her refusal to marry ended after her success in the BPSC.
Shama Parveen’s mother Parveen Khatoon is a helper in Anganwadi and has supported her family with this job. The mother never compromised on the education of her children.
Shama’s younger sister Saba Parveen is working in Delhi after studying journalism. “I did not attend any coaching to prepare for this exam and only studied at home.
She is grateful to MM Tiwari Sir of Siwan for helping her in preparing for the coveted examination.
“My Nana is my ideal. He never let us feel the absence of our father and held my hand at every step of my journey. We can never forget about his role in our lives.”
Shama says while growing up she had heard about the BPSC and UPSC. I followed this common conversation and started reading magazines etc from my days for general knowledge during my matriculation days.“I would read all the news about great peoples’ lives and used to read interviews of successful people. I got my inspiration from these readings, “ she said.
source: http://www.awazthevoice.in / Awaz The Voice / Home> Youth / by Mohammad Akram / August 18th, 2022
CP Rizwan moved to the UAE in 2014 after not getting a Ranji Trophy game. Will be special if we get to play against India, he says.
From not being able to get a game for his state in the Ranji Trophy to leading a national team, Rizwan’s cricketing fortunes have changed for the better.
CP Rizwan’s cricket career didn’t really take off and the electrical engineer from Kerala, like many from his state, migrated to the gulf after landing a job in Sharjah.
Eight years later, the 34-year-old has made it big – on the field. On Thursday, the Emirates Cricket Board named Rizwan the skipper for the Asia Cup qualifiers. If Rizwan’s United Arab Emirates (UAE) win the qualifiers, they will be in the same group as heavyweights India and Pakistan.
“It will definitely be special if we qualify and get to play against India. But we just want to focus on one step at a time,” Rizwan told The Indian Express The UAE, Kuwait, Hong Kong and Singapore will be fighting for the one spot available in the group stage.
From not being able to get a game for his state in the Ranji Trophy to leading a national team, Rizwan’s cricketing fortunes have changed for the better.
Rizwan, leg-spinner turned batsman, hails from Thalassery, a cricket hub with a history that dates back to the British Raj. He made a name for himself in age-group cricket and represented Kerala in U-19 and U-23 levels. He also toured South Africa with a Kerala team that included the likes of Sanju Samson. But he could not progress further because he took a break from the sport to complete his engineering degree. He tried to make a comeback after completing his studies but was not able to replicate his age-group success at the senior level. He was named in the Ranji Trophy squad but remained on the bench.
Migrating to the UAE for a job also gave Rizwan’s cricket career a new lease of life, and it has reached new heights now. On Sunday, he walked out to lead the UAE against Kuwait in their first qualifier game.
Last year, Rizwan scored his first international century (109) in an ODI against Ireland when the team was under pressure at 51 for 3. He added 184 runs for the fourth wicket along with Muhammad Usman. The two centurions helped the UAE chase down 270 with six wickets in hand and an over to spare.
“I am happy and honoured to lead the UAE national team. We have been doing well in T20 tournaments. Our players play a lot of T20 games here in the domestic circuit also. But having said that, we have to execute the skills in the right way on the given day,” Rizwan said.
In former India all-rounder Robin Singh, the UAE have an experienced coach to guide their newly-appointed skipper.
“We have been working really hard under coach Robin Singh. He is a person with a great work ethic and that quality has rubbed on to the players also. We have been training well and hopefully, everything will fall into place,” Rizwan, who has played 29 ODIs and seven T20Is for UAE, said.
The electrical engineer, who graduated from Cochin University of Science and Technology, had an opportunity to return home when he got a job with the postal department but he decided against moving back.
His performances in the domestic matches in UAE for teams like Yogi Group, Bukhatir XI and Interface, eventually opened the doors to the UAE national team. After fulfilling the requirement of residing in the UAE for four years, Rizwan made his debut for his adopted country in an ODI against Nepal in January 2019.
“Yes, it could be said that my decision (to stay in the UAE) has been vindicated. I just want to say thanks to all the coaches, friends, family and relatives and the almighty who helped me in this journey,” said Rizwan.
Biju George, the former India women’s fielding coach, has seen Rizwan from his under-23 days for Kerala.
“Rizwan is a fully dedicated player. He is a confident and street-smart player, I think, he can be an asset to the UAE team as their captain,” George said.
The UAE opted for split captaincy and Ahmed Raza, who was the captain in all formats, now leads the team in ODIs.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Sports> Cricket / by Narayanan S, Kochi / August 22nd, 2022
Published by the Popular Front of India, “The Unsung Heroes of Indian Freedom Struggle” features the heroes and heroines who gave their blood and sweat for the country’s freedom, in brief but comprehensive illustrated biographies.
The book “The Unsung Heroes of Indian Freedom Struggle”, being released at a function in Kerala.
A book on lesser-known freedom fighters was released on August 15 in Kozhikode, Kerala.
The book features 75 heroes and heroines from the history of the Indian anti-colonial struggle, who gave their blood and sweat for the country’s freedom, in brief but comprehensive illustrated biographies.
Named “The Unsung Heroes of Indian Freedom Struggle”, the book, a befitting tribute to the 75th anniversary of India’s independence, was published by the Popular Front of India national committee as part of the organisation’s celebration of the 75 years of Independence.
Releasing the book at a function at IOS Hall, Meenchantha, Kozhikode, Popular Front of India Chairman O M A Salam said that the celebration of Independence Day should be about commemorating the legendary history of our forefathers who achieved freedom with their life and blood.
“It is not just a ritual to be performed. Celebration of the Independence Day should convey a message to society,” he contended.
Pointing out the attempts being made to distort the freedom struggle are rampant, he said, “Even the freedom fighters are being deliberately forgotten and erased from history through discrimination. At this stage, people must unite to reclaim the true freedom that we have lost.”
Expressing his deep anguish at the state of the nation, he said, “Even as India is growing, there is concern about the path the country is taking. The Sangh Parivar is trying to commemorate the partition of India as the entire country is celebrating Independence. The RSS says that Gandhi was behind the partition of India, and the BJP says that Mohammad Jinnah and Jawaharlal Nehru were behind the partition.”
He called on society should be vigilant against such sinister moves that spoil the spirit of the Independence Day celebrations.
Salam concluded his speech by extending Independence Day greetings to all countrymen.
Kerala state leaders Abdul Hameed, A Abdul Sathar, S Nizar, P K Abdul Latheef and K K Kabeer also addressed the gathering.
source: http://www.clarionindia.net / Clarion India / Home> India> Spotlight / by Clarion India / August 20th, 2022
B Abdul Haq at the counter of Connoisseur Collection, originally the Bharath Watch Company, Chennai | Photo Credit: S Aswini Rao
The Connoisseur Collection family has been the guardian of innumerable timepieces in Chennai for the past 64 years. This Madras Week, they share a few memories.
It is easy to lose yourself in the labyrinth that is Spencer Plaza, with its narrow alleys and seemingly identical corridors. But it is worth it, for tucked away between stores selling T-shirts, phone covers and silver jewellery is a quaint space where time has stopped.
Connoisseur Collection, originally the Bharath Watch Company, was launched in 1958 in Pondy Bazaar by R Abdul Bari, then shifted to Spencer Plaza in 1999. It is now run by his son B Abdul Haq who holds aloft the 64 years of legacy single-handedly.
”My father’s work intrigued me, so I entered the field after discontinuing my education,” says Haq, who learned the craft from his father when he was just 12 years, at the shop. Here, dead watches and clocks come alive at the hands of their knowledgeable and skilled owner.
A six-decade-old timepiece at Connoisseur Collection, Chennai | Photo Credit: S Aswini Rao
Haq’s passion is evident in the way he handles the watches, and shows off his collection of rare luxury pieces from brands like Patek Philippe and Rolex. He opens a case to reveal a Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711, made in the mid-1970s by the legendary watch designer Gerald Genta. He moves on to reveal similar vintage watches like Patek Philippe Geneve watches made of 18k gold, and a Patek Phillipe 2583 specially made in 1956.
As he carefully places these prized possessions back in a box and locks them away, he reminisces about the late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, and actress Sowcar Janaki visiting his father’s shop with timepieces of their own.
“The rarest watch I have repaired is a Moon Phase by Patek Philippe,” he says, adding, “Customers bring in mechanical watches, Rolex, Omega, and other expensive Swiss watches for servicing, usually to fix broken glass dialsor button malfunctions.”
The entrepreneur reminisces the earlier times of Spencer’s Mall, saying it used to be an international hub with tourists from all over the world visiting in search of high-end brands. Those brands have since migrated to other malls, and visitors to Spencer’s have dwindled. But this shop stays put, he says, as the cost of running a business in Spencer’s is reasonable, and those in the know can always find their way to him.
As the self-styled “police officer in the field of watches” fastidiously wipes dials, he disapprovingly speaks of those who run businesses motivated only by money, with no technical knowledge. Gently wrapping each watch in velvet-lined covers he states, “Custom-made watches have no value, there is no originality left in them. When a company manufactures a watch you should not change anything.”
He wears a Rolex Deepsea watch and says his one of his favourite pieces is the Nautilus series from Patek Philippe. His father bestowed him a Vulcain cricket solid gold wrist alarm from the 1950s— his most prized possession.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style / by Shivani Illakiya PT / August 20th, 2022
The 7 th and the last Nizam of Hyderabad Nawab Mir Osman Ali Khan (Born: 6-4-1886; Died: 24-2-1967) was said to be the richest man in the world and was known for his noble deeds and rich contributions in various fields such as education, medicine, engineering, social service, architecture, heritage, poetry, art and culture. He ascended the throne on 29 August 1911 at the age of 25 and ruled the Hyderabad State between 1911 and 1948. It is amazing that he used Jacob diamond, a 185 carat gem the size of a lime worth 50 million pounds equal to around Rs. 480.00 crores in Indian currency, as a paperweight. It is said that despite of his enormous wealth, he used to spend very little for his own self and led a simple life. He never indulged in extravaganza and denounced all kinds of luxuries. This couplet reflects the persona of Nizam, a well known poet himself:
“Tumhari umar youn hi raayegaan guzri hai ay Osman Na tum ko dast ghaib aayaa na tum ko keemiya aayee.”
People are benefitted even today with what he left behind him. Be it Osmania University or Osmania Hospital, Charminar Nizamia Tibbi Hospital, NIMS, Assembly building premises, Jubilee Hall, Hyderabad Museum (State Museum), High Court Building, Kacheguda Railway Station, Begumpet Airport, Asafia Library (State Central Library), Moazzamjahi Market, State Bank of Hyderabad (now merged in SBI) , Osman Sagar, Himayat Sagar, Nizam Sagar, Nizam Sugar Factory, etc. He constructed Hyderabad House in Delhi now used for diplomatic meetings by Govt. of India, Rubaat in Saudi Arabia for the convenience of Haj and Umrah pilgrims from Telangana and parts of Karnataka and Maharashtra – part of erstwhile princely State of Hyderabad. He was a great visionary and is called “Architect of Modern Hyderabad.” One would wonder on coming to know that the Nizam had provided financial aid for construction / reconstruction and maintenance of the worship places of not only Muslims but also of Hindus, Sikhs, Christians and Parsees apart from extending monthly honorarium to the priests of a number of temples, churches, Imams and Moazzans of mosques within and outside the country. Notable among them is Balaji Temple in Tirupati of Andhra Pradesh now popularly known as Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), Sitarambagh Temple, Hyderabad, Yadagirigutta temple in Bhongir, Thousand Pillar Temple at Warangal, grand mosques at Makkah and Madinah. He had also extended monetary contribution for construction of Hindu Banaras University, Andhra University, University of London, etc. His farmaans releasing financial aid to these places of worship and Universities are still available with Archives Department in Hyderabad.
It is not known how many devotees or those who are associated with the famous TTD or other such temples today are aware of this fact or for that matter even very few Muslims knows that the Nizam shouldered the maintenance responsibility of Holy mosques of Makkah and Madinah and bore the expenses thereof. King Saud of KSA visited Hyderabad in 1954 to meet the Nizam and thanked him personally for his monetary help. Likewise, it is doubtful whether the products of Banaras Hindu University and Andhra University or those who are associated with these Universities have ever taken pains to know the important contributions of the Nizam for their establishment. He funded for compilation of Indian epic “Mahabharatha”. He sanctioned scholarships to the students pursuing their studies abroad without any discrimination. Sarojini Naidu, freedom fighter was one of the beneficiaries. He sanctioned establishment of Hyderabad Telugu Academy in 1940. People from all walks of life lived together peacefully and happily during his reign. He never discriminated anybody on the basis of religion, caste or creed. He gave equal rights and respect to one and all. The following verses of his poetry endorse this:
“Aish wa ishrath ki hai jo dhoom Dakan mein Osman
Sab ye kahte hain tere bakht ki bedari hai
Zamana kehta hai laag Osman Har ek ko aas hai tere hi dar se.”
It is said that the Nizam was a very kind hearted king, he could not endure the hardship and sufferings of his people. One day he visited Osmania hospital to console a patient where he saw a poor man with no legs crawling over the earth. This miserable condition of the poor man pained him very much. Soon after initiating necessary consultations and discussions in this regard, he immediately purchased the land at Panjagutta and arranged for construction of orthopedic hospital with an estimated cost of Rs. 30 lakhs, now known as Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS). Similarly the Great Musi floods of 1908 locally known as “Thugyani Sitambar” (in which about 50,000 people said to have died, the floods razedover 80,000 houses making a fourth of the population shelterless) prompted the Nizam to invite Sir M. Visvesvarayya, an Indian Civil Engineer and a Statesman to advise and assist in the reconstruction of the city and to devise measures for the prevention of the recurrence of such a terrible catastrophe. Thus, the twin lakes of Hyderabad viz. Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar were built up.
The pity is when he negated the proposal of merging the Princely State of Hyderabad into Indian Union, Operation Polo widely known as “Police Action’ took place in 1948 during the subsistence of “Stand Still Agreement” and none came to his rescue. The Nizam said to be very close to Mahatma Gandhi, but, unfortunately the latter was already gunned down, by then. The Nizam was completely betrayed and left alone. The plight reflects in the following verses of his own poetry (Ghazal) :-
“Is se bhi bud naseeb hai Osman koi bhala Jo shaqs haer pher mein duniya ke rahgaya Osman hamara rang badalta kabhi nahin Paband apni wiza ke apne chalan ke hain Thu jaanta hai unko matlab ke hain ye Osman Aghyaar se tho har aan hashiyaar raha karna Osman thu kar chuka hai hazaron ka imtehaan Besharam hoon jo ke aise bahut kam bashar mile.”
Princely State of Hyderabad amalgamated into Indian Union in September 1948. The Nizam was appointed as Raj Pramukh of Hyderabad State by the Government of India in Jan, 1950. Even after the end of his kingdom, the Nizam continued to support all the social, educational and welfare activities. He donated 5 tons of gold to the Union Government during the war with China in 1965 (Sino-Indian War). Yet, he is termed anti-national, anti-people and discriminative by fascist forces with biased mind. The above are just a few of his priceless and precious achievements and contributions narrated here out of many. Otherwise the list is very huge. Unfortunately, many of his contributions and generous deeds seems to have been suppressed selectively, of which the people obviously are unaware of and projected the Nizam otherwise with distorted facts. Here, the following verses of his poetry stand testimony to the situation:
“Naheen kuch aetebaar ohad wa paymaa Wafa ki kya ummeed is bewafa se Ye housla ye kaleja ye dil hamara hai Ke baare ishq tumhara hamee uthathe hain Andaaz ye sitam ke tujhe the kahan naseeb Meri wafa ne tujhe jafakaar kar diya.”
A demand is made every year to declare September 17 as a ‘Liberation Day’ on the pretext that Telangana is liberated from the clutches of the private army of Razakars led by Qasim Razwi and Nizam’s army who jointly said to have committed excesses on unarmed and innocent citizens of Hyderabad State between 1946 and 1948, which is certainly condemnable. It means prior to and till 1946 ever since he accede the Kingship in September, 1911 i.e. for 35 years of his long rule, there were no complaints. And these disturbances erupted in his last period of tenure perhaps due to various circumstances and factors prevalent during that period in the country and which were beyond control. Indian independent struggle was at peak, widespread riots, rampant bribery and chaos in the Nizam Government weakened the grip of Nizam over administration, the seeds of hatred were being sown under the guise of Arya Samaj Vyayama Shalas in Hyderabad State against the Government to destabilize it which led to communal violence in the hitherto peaceful living people cutting across their religious beliefs and practices which is known for “Ganga Jamuni Tahzeeb”. Coupled with Razakars brutalities then, it has ultimately led to revolt against Nizam and his rule from within the State. However, history is evident that there was no such kingdom in India or elsewhere then, which was spotless and entirely free from such instances of hatred and bloodshed. And not to speak of the World’s largest democracy we are living in today where communal clashes, murders, rapes, large scale robberies, white collar scams and so on have become the order of the day. Gandhi is abused and Godse is praised by the so called nationalists. Nizam was not a foreigner nor had he invaded Hyderabad State. What is going on today, it seems, the Nizam sensed it during his lifetime itself and predicted thus :
“Mizaaje yaar mein jaaniye kya ab samaayee hai
Ke mere roobaru meri buraayee hothi jaathi hai”
In yet another stanza he writes (at the face of the fascists) :
“Na aaya aur kuch hum ko agar aayee wafa aayee
Magar haan tujh ko ay zaalim sitam aaya jafaa aayee
The unparalleled services rendered by the Nizam for the cause of people, society and the nation as a whole can not be ignored under the pretext of the riots perpetrated by Razakars, which neither can be attributed to him in the light of his above multi facet and true secular characteristics with undisputed patriotism.
Narrating an event where Nizam had complied with the Order of the Independent High Court with due respect to the judiciary, which ruled in favour of his family with regard to award of enhanced compensation in some property dispute, the Chief Minister of Telangana, Mr. K. Chandraserkhar Rao, has praised the Nizam on the floor of Assembly and declared that he is proud of his King H.E.H. the Nizam VII Mir Osman Ali Khan for his splendid works done for the welfare of people. However, a real tribute to Nizam’s golden era in recognition of the yeomen services rendered by him for the cause of humanity and the society at large in all spheres of life shall be to observe his birth anniversary the 6 th April of every year at Government level officially, as a mark of respect.
Let me conclude with Jigar Muradabadi’s following couplet of poetry:
“Un ka jo kaam hai’ woh ahle siasat jane: Mera paighaam mohabbat hai jahaan tak pahunche.” (What their job is, let the politicians be bothered about.My message is ‘love’, may it reach the whole world)
***
shaikismail358@gmail.com
Courtesy: Shoukath-e-Osmania, Pundit Sunderlal Committee Report and other source of information.
source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirror / Home> Indian Muslim> Positive Story / by Shaik Ismail / August 19th, 2022
On 24 April, 1857, Colonel G.M.C Smith of 3rd Regiment, Light Cavalry, at Meerut asked his troops to load the cartridges in Enfield rifles. 85 out of the 90 Indian troops of the Regiment declined receiving the cartridges on account of usage of beef or pig fat in those. All the 85 Indians were sentenced to prison and their case was forwarded to Major General Hewit.
We are publishing the name of all these 85 Indian sepoys who defied the English command and thus triggered the first national war of Independence from Meerut.
Mataa-Deen (Havildar)
Naiks:
Sheikh Peer Ali
Ameer Qudrat Ali
Sheikh Hasan ud-Deen
Sheikh Noor Muhammad
Sepoys:
Sheetal Singh
Jehangir Khan
Meer Mosim Ali
Ali Noor Khan
Meer Husain Bakhsh
Muttra Singh
Narain Singh
Lal Singh
Sewdeen Singh
Sheikh Husain Bakhsh
Sahibdad Khan
Bishan Singh
Baldeo Singh
Sheikh Nandoo
Nawab Khan
Sheikh Ramzan Ali
Ali Mohammad Khan
Makhan Singh
Durga Singh
Nasurullah Begh
Meerahib Khan
Durga Singh (2nd)
Nabi Bakhsh Khan
Jurakhan Singh
Nadju Khan
Jurakhan Singh (2nd)
Abdullah Khan
Ehsan Khan
Zabardast Khan
Murtaza Khan
Burjuar Singh
Azimullah Khan
Azimullah Khan (2nd)
Kalla Khan
Sheikh Sadullah
Salar Bakhsh Khan
Sheikh Rahat Ali
Dwarka Singh
Kalka Singh
Raghubir Singh
Baldeo Singh
Darshan Singh
Imdad Husain
Peer Khan
Moti Singh
Sheikh Fazal Imam
Sewa Singh
Heera Singh
Murad Sher Khan
Sheikh Aram Ali
Kashi Singh
Ashraf Ali Khan
Qadardad Khan
Sheikh Rustam
Bhagwan Singh
Meer Imdad Ali
Shiv Baksh Singh
Lakshman Singh
Sheikh Imam Bakhsh
Usman Khan
Maqsood Ali Khan
Sheikh Ghazi Bakhsh
Sheikh Ommaid Ali
Abdul Wahab Khan
Ram Sahai Singh
Parna Ali Khan
Lakshman Dubey
Ramswaran Singh
Sheikh Azad Ali
Shiv Singh
Sheetal Singh
Mohan Singh
Vilayat Ali Khan
Sheikh Muhammad Ewaz
Indar Singh
Fateh Khan
Maiku Singh
Sheikh Qasim Ali
Ramcharan Singh
Daryao Singh
The list is an indication of Hindu Muslim unity during the war of Independence.
source: http://www.heritagetimes.in /Heritage Times / Home> Featured Posts> Freedom Movement / by Mahino Fatima / July 30th, 2021
