With a copy of the Holy Qur’an in one hand and the nectar of Telugu verse in the other, Mohammad Abdul Rasheed’s life is a testament to an enduring truth: language knows no faith, and the alphabet recognises no borders.
Mohammad Abdul Rasheed is a rare crimson rose blooming in the sprawling Nandanavanam, the celestial garden of Telugu literature. His faith is Islam, yet the consciousness of being profoundly, unapologetically ‘Telugu’ flows through his very veins. He possesses no grand academic degrees, but armed with nothing more than an insatiable appetite for the written word and a fierce determination to weaponize the alphabet, he has authored 43 books. His life is an epic poem in motion.
Recently appointed as the National Coordinator for the prestigious Sri Sri Kala Vedika 7th World Telugu Literature Conference, this Akshara Tapasvi (an ascetic of letters) stands as a monument to cultural synthesis.
The Ten-Paise Genesis
Born on April 12, 1952, in the Desaipeta locality of Warangal, Rasheed was the third of 12 children born to the impoverished couple Mohammad Abdul Sattar and Sarabi. His romance with literature began with a childhood snub. At the age of nine, while lingering in a local eatery, he was mesmerised by the vibrant, multi-coloured jacket of a novel held by a customer. When the young boy instinctively reached out to touch it, he was harshly rebuked. That sting did not discourage him; instead, it ignited a lifelong obsession.
He found his sanctuary at a makeshift wooden kiosk outside the Rajarajeswari Talkies. For a deposit of one rupee, the shopkeeper let him rent pulp novels and magazines for 10 paise a day. Flipping through the iconic pages of Chandamama, Balamitra, and Vijayachitra, Rasheed devoured stories the way others consumed food.
“I have no higher education,” Rasheed reflects, his voice tinged with quiet pride. “But it was that raw, unadulterated reading habit of my childhood that gave me the spine to stand tall in the literary world today.”
The Epiphany in ‘Geeturai’ and the Accidental Teacher
As the years rolled on, the writer within Rasheed found his awakening in the columns of the Geeturai weekly magazine, where he began contributing sharp opinion pieces. His turning point, however, came during an Islamic training seminar. Tasked with speaking on the theme “Desh Bachao” (Save the Nation), Rasheed delivered an electrifying five-minute speech that stunned his mentors.
Recognising a rare linguistic prodigy, authorities appointed him in 1985 to teach Telugu as a second language at Hyderabad’s renowned Jamia Darul Huda Madrasa. For 12 years, he served as a bridge between communities, earning the revered title of ‘Rasheed Master’ among generations of students.
A Harvest of 43 Volumes
The year 1990 marked a seismic shift in his literary career when he took up the monumental task of translating four dense volumes by the globally acclaimed Islamic scholar, Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, into Telugu. Since then, the ink has never dried on his pen. Of the 43 books he has delivered to the Telugu literary canon, nine are original creative works:
In 2003, his seminal book ‘Jihad’ – an effort to demystify and contextually reclaim the term – was unveiled and lauded by Jnanpith Award laureate, Dr. C. Narayana Reddy (CiNaRe).
In 2021, his poignant poetry anthology ‘Bangaru Desam Naa Desam’ (My Country, A Golden Country) was launched at the historic Ravindra Bharathi stage by the venerable academician Acharya Kolakaluri Enoch.
Verse for a New State
When the fires of the Telangana statehood movement were raging, Rasheed’s verses became an anthem for progress. During the 2017 World Telugu Conference, standing on the Jagruthi platforms helmed by then Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and Kalvakuntla Kavitha, Rasheed’s voice echoed across the auditorium:
“Then, it was a Telangana of barren rocks… today, it is a Telangana of precious gems. / Then, it was wrapped in pitch darkness… today, it is a Telangana radiant with the light of electric progress.”
The stanza brought the house down, proving that his poetry was intimately tied to the soil that raised him.
To the Zenith of Global Telugu Stages
Rasheed’s contribution extends far beyond the quiet solitude of writing; he is a lifetime member who has shaped four distinct World Telugu Conferences. He famously shared stages with cultural ambassadors like Ghazal Srinivas, felicitating contemporary poets.
In a crowning achievement for his decades of silent service, the ‘Sri Sri Kala Vedika’ has named Rasheed the National Coordinator for its upcoming 7th World Telugu Literature Conference, slated for June 6–7, 2026, at the Godavari Global University in Rajamahendravaram. For a scholar from a Muslim minority background to be elevated to the vanguard of Telugu cultural custodianship is a historic moment of pride for the entire state.
A Decorated Journey
Over the decades, a garland of prestigious accolades has found its way to Rasheed:
Gidugu Rammurthi Panthulu National Award (for linguistic service)
Joshua Sahitya Bhushan Award
International Sri Sri Kala Vedika ‘Kaviratna’ National Merit Award
Prajakavi Kaloji Narayana Rao Literary Service Award
Maulana Abul Kalam National Award
NTR Legendary Award by the Helping Hand Foundation
The Final Verse
Mohammad Abdul Rasheed remains an inherently humble man who has spent a lifetime proving that while faiths may vary, language remains a singular, unifying thread. He is the living embodiment of the truth that letters possess no caste, and syntax bears no religion. The boy from the Warangal cinema kiosk who traded ten paise for a dream has climbed to the absolute zenith of the Telugu literary world. As his pen continues to slash through biases, the Telugu linguistic world smiles upon its extraordinary son.
source: http://www.radiancenews.com / Radiance News / Home> Features> Focus / by Radiance News Bureau / June 03rd, 2026
In a rapidly modernising world where old buildings are demolished overnight and family trunks filled with history are often discarded as junk, one man in Indore has spent the last 34 years fighting against time.
On International Museum Day, observed globally on May 18, the theme announced by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) for 2026 speaks about the role of museums in uniting a divided world. At a time when societies appear increasingly fragmented, museums continue to connect generations through memory, heritage and identity.
Historian Zafar Ansari
In Indore, historian Zafar Ansari has quietly turned that idea into a lifetime mission.
What started as a small personal collection in 1992 has today become one of the country’s largest archives dedicated to the history of a single city, preserving over 15,000 rare objects linked to Indore and the Holkar dynasty.
For Ansari, this collection is not about nostalgia. It is about ensuring that future generations can still see, touch and understand the city they inherited.
Indore once had its first museum in Krishnapura
Long before modern museums became part of urban conversations, Indore had already established one.
A rare 19th-century photograph of the Indore Residency, established by the East India Company after the 1817 Battle of Mahidpur, featuring British officers posing with a crocodile in the Residency gardens.
In 1923, Maharaja Tukojirao Holkar III established Nar Ratna Mandir in Krishnapura as the city’s first museum. After Independence, the historical objects housed there were shifted to the Central Museum near the zoo, and the old structure was later converted into the Devalalikar Kala Vithika, dedicated to renowned artist D.D. Devalalikar.
A rare 1912 photograph showing a grand procession of decorated Holkar State elephants lined outside Indore’s historic Rajwada for the arrival of special guests. Adorned with silver embellishments, the elephants reflected the royal grandeur of the Holkar dynasty.
Despite Indore’s deep Holkar-era legacy, only one major historical museum emerged in the city over the next century. For Ansari, that gap became a calling.
Started collecting history in 1992
Ansari began collecting historical material on January 12, 1992.
Rare copper coins from the reign of Yashwantrao Holkar I featuring military symbols such as daggers, spears, state flags and cannons of the Holkar army, reflecting the ruler’s deep connection with warfare and military camps.
At a time when old coins, royal documents, maps and photographs were considered useless by many families, he began travelling across cities, meeting collectors, historians and antique dealers to save pieces of Indore’s forgotten past.
A rare complete set of silver coins issued by Ahilyabai Holkar from Maheshwar in the late 18th century, including one rupee, athanni, chavanni and other denominations featuring Shivling, belpatra and sacred symbols
Over the decades, the collection expanded into a massive archive covering nearly 300 years of the city’s journey. Today, the archive has been divided into three sections, museum, archives and library.
20 galleries envisioned inside the museum
Ansari has envisioned the museum in 20 thematic galleries, each narrating a different chapter of Indore’s social, cultural and political evolution.
Rare Holkar State postal treasures, including the first stamp published in London in 1886, the extremely rare 1889 half-anna circular stamp issued on indigenous paper, and over 200 official seal impressions of various state departments
The collection houses hundreds of rare 19th-century photographs, original Holkar-era maps and lithographs, silver and copper coins, medals, royal turbans, copper buckles, badges, weight and measurement instruments, royal stationery and documents linked to Ahilyabai Holkar.
Among the rarest possessions are handwritten letters by Maharaja Yashwant Rao Holkar and Maharaja Tukojirao Holkar, along with original correspondence of Sir John Malcolm and Robert Hamilton.
Rare Holkar State military artefacts including a World War II silver medal linked to Indore soldiers posted in Iran and Iraq, a historic MOG Line badge, and an Army Headquarters insignia, preserved at the Zafar Ansari Museum of Indore, reflecting the city’s rich royal military heritage.
The museum also preserves Holkar-era copper plates, utensils and administrative records that provide a glimpse into governance during the princely state period.
Rare newspapers, Gandhi documents and vintage music records
The archive is not limited to royal history. Ansari has also preserved rare newspapers and magazines published in Indore during the 19th and 20th centuries, creating a timeline of how the city evolved socially and politically.
The collection includes photographs and documents related to Mahatma Gandhi’s visits to Indore in 1918 and 1935, along with rare 78 RPM records of maestros associated with the Indore gharana. Memories connected to Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar, both deeply linked to Indore, are also part of the archive.
Thousands of Holkar State gazettes, books on Indore, records of the city’s cotton and opium trade, and models of heritage buildings have also been carefully preserved.
“I sold my house to save history”
Preserving the city’s history came with enormous personal sacrifice. Ansari says there were years when financial survival became difficult, but he continued investing in the collection. At one point, he even sold his own house to sustain the archive.
A rare May 7, 1949 invitation sent by Yashwantrao Holkar for the Indore visit of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, displayed from the collection of Zafar Ansari Museum of Indore.
Even today, nearly 70% of his earnings are spent on acquiring, restoring and preserving historical material. He describes the museum as ‘a public collection belonging to the people of Indore.’
School students see history through heritage walks
Beyond collecting objects, Ansari has worked continuously to connect people with the city’s heritage. For decades, he has conducted heritage walks across Indore, introducing students and residents to forgotten buildings, old markets and Holkar-era architecture.
Ansari shows rate artefacts during the visit of International delegation for Heritage Walk in Indore
During these walks, he often displays original artefacts from his museum before school students, helping them visualise the city’s past beyond textbooks. He has also delivered more than 300 lectures on Indore’s history and cultural legacy.
Indore’s ‘Time Machine’
Among heritage enthusiasts and researchers, Ansari is popularly known as Indore’s ‘Time Machine.’
During unique heritage walks organised across Indore, historian Zafar Ansari has introduced thousands of students to rare Holkar-era artefacts and the city’s historical legacy from his personal collection, believing that history is best learned beyond classrooms at real heritage sites
His collection has been displayed during several major international events hosted in the city, including the G20 Summit and Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, where delegates and international visitors were introduced to Indore’s historical journey through original artefacts.
Tourism experts believe that his continued heritage outreach has significantly contributed to the growing interest in Indore’s cultural tourism and Holkar history over the last decade. Recently, Usha Devi Holkar also sent a letter appreciating his efforts in taking the historical legacy of Indore to national and international platforms.
More than a museum, it is a memory archive
For Ansari, museums are not buildings filled with lifeless objects.
Historian Zafar Ansari showcased rare Holkar-era portraits and artefacts from his personal collection before international delegates, including ministers from Argentina and Japan during the G20 Summit and overseas guests at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas at Krishnapura Chhatri in Indore.
Every old coin, photograph, handwritten letter and newspaper clipping in his archive carries a story of the people who built Indore. At a time when cities are racing toward the future, his museum attempts to protect the memories that risk being left behind.
And perhaps that is why his collection feels less like a museum and more like a living time machine, one that allows Indore to remember itself.
source: http://www.bhaskarenglish.in / Bhaskar English / Home> English News> Local> MP/ by Tarun Tiwari / May 19th, 2026
VB scribes Yogesh Malluru, Abdul Rahiman Talapady among awardees
Yogesh Mallur, Abdul Rahiman
Bengaluru:
The Karnataka Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) has announced its annual awards for the year 2024, recognising journalists across various categories.
Vartha Bharati journalists Yogesh Malluru and Abdul Rahiman Talapady are among the awardees. Yogesh Mallur has been selected for the G. Narayanaswamy Award for Best Rural Reporting, while Abdul Rahiman Talapady has been honoured under the Tagadoor Kamalamma Veeregowda Award for reporting on farmers’ livelihoods and distress.
The awards will be presented at the 40th State Journalists’ Conference to be held in Bidar on April 11 and 12, KUWJ state president Shivanand Tagadur and general secretary G.C. Lokesh said in a release.
Details of the awards:
1. G. Narayanaswamy Award (Best Rural Report) Yogesh Malluru, Vartha Bharati, Bengaluru K.A. Ismail, Shakti, Kodagu
12. Mandibele Shamanna Memorial Award (Rural People’s Life Report) Shankar Katte Malalawadi, Janamitra, Hunsur Shivaraj Sunkada, Mudgal, Lingasugur, Raichur Prashant Pade, Udayavani, Kundapura, Udupi
13. Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Memorial Award (Bengaluru Urban and Rural) H.P. Praveen Prashanth Rippanpet V.S. Honnachar, Leaders Weekly Zukriya, Times of Karnataka
14. Yajaman T. Narayanappa Memorial Award (Best Agricultural Report at District Level)
A person of immense courage, resilience, simplicity and sacrifice, this communist leader is a beacon in the movement for women’s rights in India.
Hajrah Begum. Photo: By arrangement.
I sometimes feel that when future generations remember all of you, will they ever think of Alys (Faiz Ahmad Faiz’ wife) or me. We have always walked with you, although you were a step ahead of us. Sometimes you would look back to perhaps make sure that we were still there, following behind you. And we would reassuringly smile back although our hearts would cry out in pain.
– Excerpt from a letter by Razia Sajjad Zaheer, wife of Sajjad Zaheer, to Faiz Ahmad Faiz in June 1951 when Faiz and Zaheer had been imprisoned in the Rawalpindi conspiracy case.
In the opening pages of her novel, Aakhir e Shab ke Humsafar, the writer Qurratulain Hyder depicts a scene in a crumbling old house in the early 1940s in the old city of Dhaka where the protagonist (a young Bengali Muslim woman, Deepali) and her Christian friend (Rosie Banerjee) are welcomed by a young man called Mahmood ul Haque. In the conversation that follows, Rosie (a reverend’s daughter), is shown as possessing progressive ideals yet holds biases regarding Muslims; she thought of them as fanatics, toadies of the British and womanisers, not always in that order. So, while speaking to the mostly young Muslim men in this gathering Rosie is surprised to notice that many among them had Left leaning political views.
A back and forth ensues while Rosie’s hosts share a list of names of Muslim revolutionaries and radicals in India and elsewhere, like the Indian student Mirza Abbas who had been taught how to make bombs by the Russians, and of the great Indian revolutionary who died penniless in the US, Maulana Barkatullah. The Muhajareen, which included people like Shaukat Usmani, Fazal Ilahi Qurban and Ferozzuddin Mansoor, who had traveled to the Soviet Union in the early 1920s to study at the University of Eastern Toilers, were mentioned. Finally, Dada Amir Haider’s (the seaman/lashkar who became the member of the communist party in the US) name was added.
Hyder may have emphasised this history to situate herself as a Muslim in post-colonial India – in a post Nehruvian era – and to re-remember why Indian Muslims also had a right to be proud of their nationalist pasts; hidden and obscure histories of those Muslims who were part of India’s freedom movement and who followed radical nationalist politics. I present a glimpse from a more complex and important piece of writing to suggest that even in Hyder’s sympathetic treatment of the Muslim Left (at least in the earlier part of the novel) she forgets to mention radical Muslim women like Hajrah Begum, Razia Sajjad Zaheer and Rashid Jahan in her recounting of names. It may be possible that these women (and many more) had not become part of the national imagination by the early 1940s, the period in which the novel is situated. By the end of the novel, we also see Haider providing an implicit critique of the Left, where class positions may have trumped radical politics.
To be sure, Dr. Rashid Jahan has lately received much attention in print (Rakshanda Jalil 2014), and Razia Sajjad Zaheer’s daughter (Noor Zaheer) has recently published her mother’s biography (Alys Faiz and Tahera Mazhar Ali should be added to this list). In contrast, Hajrah Begum, the protagonist of this essay, a pioneer of the women’s movement in late colonial India and the first South Asian woman to become the member of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB), has received negligible attention by historians and archivists alike. My preliminary effort here is to remember a person of utmost conviction and generosity of spirit as she navigated decades of politics in the communist movement in colonial and post-colonial India. To write about her, I delved into multiple forms of archives; the interviews she gave, her writings, the writings and experiences of her contemporaries, oral history with family members, memoirs, scraps of evidence available in “discarded” letters and more.
Hajrah Mumtazullah Khan was born in 1910 to Mumtazullah Khan and Natiqa Begum, in Sahranpur, (western Uttar Pradesh) where Mumtazullah Khan was then a tehsildar. She was second of six siblings, the eldest being Zakaullah Khan (the famous Pakistani architect, Kamil Khan Mumtaz’ father). There was another son Ikramullah Khan, between her and her sister, Zohra Sehgal (the famous performer and actor), and then Uzra Butt (another famous actor and performer), Amina Begum (founded Happy Dale School in Karachi) and Sabra Begum. The family traced its lineage to the Rohilla Pathans who had settled during the 18th century in Western UP in the areas of Najibabad, Moradabad Bedayun, Bareilly, Saharanpur and Rampur. Both parents, who were first cousins, were closely related to the ruling nawabs of Rampur.
Hajrah Begum with her father, sisters and niece. Photo: By arrangement with her family.
Hajrah begum at the age of 10 was sent to the Queen Mary College in Lahore, where she was followed by her younger sisters. This was a segregated school for girls from elite households and although Mumtazullah Khan, their father, was a senior government servant the sisters may have been admitted due to their relations with the princely state of Rampur. While the girls were in school, their mother passed away. Until she completed her matriculation at the age of 17, the school’s close political atmosphere was partially balanced by her interaction with her elder brother Zakaullah Khan who was at Aligarh by the mid 1920s and would talk to young Hajrah during school holidays about how she should not stand up when ‘God Save the King’ was sung at her school as the British were not their real masters. A confusing time for Hajrah indeed, as at school, the Prince of Wales was portrayed as the most charming person in the world, while at home the brother was speaking about freedom from the British. In college and in his work life, Zakaullah Khan (who received an engineering degree from UK) was not perceived as politically active, but for a purdah observing Hajrah Begum, he was a godsend, bringing into her life ideas about a future freedom and struggles, the anti-colonial struggle, the struggle for economic and social justice. In contrast, while at school with a strict and segregated English medium education, the little that came from the outside was what the day scholars would share, songs related to the stage of the nationalist movement in the 1920s.
Charkha kaato to beda paar hai
Charkha swadeshi talwar hai.
Boli amma Mohammad Ali ki
Jaan beta Khilafat main de do.
In her interview (from the early 1990s) archived at the Nehru Memorial Library, Hajrah Begum speaks about her brother and K M Ashraf (who deserves a major biography of his own), who were close friends from Aligarh days and had gone to study together to UK in the late 1920s, as major influences in her emerging understanding of anti-British Nationalism, if not her eventual tilt toward communism.
Soon after she passed her matriculation exams, Hajrah Begum was married to her paternal aunt’s son, Abdul Jamil Khan who was a DSP in the police service. In her interviews she suggests that she resented that she was not asked about whether she wanted to get married or not and this feeling persisted throughout the very short marriage of three to four years. Being unhappy in her marriage (she could not adjust to the spousal life of an officer in the elite police service), she started spending time in Meerut where her father was now posted as a magistrate. This was the time (1929-1933) when the Meerut conspiracy case was ongoing against Indian trade unionists and three Englishmen for organising an Indian railway strike. At the culmination of the trial, 27 trade union leaders were convicted under a lawsuit based on the charge that in 1921, the leftist trade unionists, S.A. Dange, Shaukat Usmani and Muzaffar Ahmad with the help of several others had conspired to establish a branch of the Communist International in India.
In Meerut, her father’s house was frequented by people like Mahmud uz Zafar (of Angarey fame. He was her maternal uncle’s son and a future member of the Communist Party of India. He later married Rashid Jahan) who would discuss the case with her brother, Zakaullah Khan. It is during this period in the early 1930s that she told her husband that she wanted to end the marriage as she had become more interested in the people who were being tried in the conspiracy case and their cause. She did not see herself in a world where she would be entertaining wives of high British officials.
Her brother Zakaullah Khan also understood the situation and suggested that if she wanted to opt out of the marriage, then she needed to be economically independent. After her separation, rather than stay with her father, she went to live with her brother in Aligarh where K.M. Ashraf was a frequent visitor and would offer her books to read, like the Intelligent Woman’s Guide to Socialism and Capitalism by Bernard Shaw. Both, her brother and Ashraf, persuaded her to get advance training as a montessori teacher from England. She sold some of her jewellery and with partial financial support from her family, left for the UK with her son.
Her arrival in London in 1933 meant a lot of adjustments, including the care of little Sami (later, Lt. General Sami Khan, a much-decorated officer in the Indian Army) who was about a year-and-a-half-old at that time. While in London, she met with Sajjad Zaheer (a family friend, one of the founders of the Progressive Writers Movement and the future secretary general of the Communist Party of Pakistan), then a student and the leader of the underground group of left oriented students in London, Cambridge and Oxford. Through Sajjad Zaheer she reconnected with K.M. Ashraf, who had returned to the UK to complete his PhD. Others in the group were Shaukat Omar (the father of the late Pakistani journalist, Kaleem Omar, also the eldest son of Zafar Omar of the Indian Police Service and the writer of the Urdu detective novels, Neeli Chattri) and Z.A. Ahmad (later the secretary general of Communist Party of India of UP and member of the Upper House of the Indian parliament).
Hajrah Begum was the only woman member of this small group of Indian students. There were weekly study groups and conversations along with attempts to bring out newsletters to influence the Indian student population then residing in UK. Hajrah Begum, young and inexperienced at the time, was initially a quiet participant during these meetings. This changed when she visited the Soviet Union after answering an ad in the journal, DailyWorker. Her two weeks in the Soviet Union in the mid-1930s gave her first-hand knowledge of the transformations that the country was going through. According to her, it was not a paradise, but she was impressed by the spirit of the people who were not colonised, like India. People were striving to attain a modicum of economic and social emancipation. On her return, she became more confident in participating in group discussions and people started deferring to her in terms of her views and experience. Around this time, according to Z.A. Ahmad’s memoirs, Hajrah Begum along with Sajjad Zaheer and Ahmad were inducted as members of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB). This was of course kept as a secret as the Communist Party in India was banned and there was strict surveillance of communist party members and supporters.
There is an incident that is worth sharing from her presence in London. In her interviews Hajrah Begum mentions how on May 1, 1934, she attended a worker’s event in Hyde Park, while there she was photographed with a red flag in her hand, and the image was published in the international Kodak magazine. The magazine captioned her photo as how South Asian women were being radicalised. The magazine also circulated in India and when it was seen by relatives and by her father there was much apprehension about what she was doing in Britain – studying or taking part in subversive politics.
During her time in London, she met Ben Bradlee, who was one of the defendants in the Meerut conspiracy case and a member of the CPGB and Shapurji Saklatwala (the famous Indian communist leader who was related to the Tata family and had given up his wealth to pursue communist politics in Britain). She also traveled to Brussels with Sajjad Zaheer as part of the delegation of students to the conference on the struggle against war and fascism. Ishaat Habibullah (father of the writer Muneeza Shamsie and grandfather of the novelist Kamila Shamsie) was the leader of this group. In the conference, the Indian student’s delegation took the position that there should be a broad front to fight not only against the approaching war and fascism in Europe, but also against imperialism and colonialism. This position was rejected by the conference, dominated by European attendees. As a protest, the Indian group walked out of the final sessions.
In 1935, the Seventh International Congress of the Communist International in the Soviet Union among other issues decided that the anti-colonial policy for communist parties and movements was to work with national anti-imperial forces against the rising threat of imperialism and fascism. Within the Indian context, the Indian National Congress was considered a bourgeois and nationalist party, the directive to Indian communists was to work in a broad front; a unity of all progressive forces in which the communist would collaborate and work with all who were anti-imperialist while retaining their distinct identity and work among workers and peasants.
With this understanding which was conveyed to the group by the then secretary general of CPGB, Harry Pollit, most members of the student group returned to India after completing their studies. A few months after reaching India, Sajjad Zaheer called a meeting of the “London Group”, and each one was asked about how they would like to proceed in their anti-imperialist politics. On her return, Hajrah Begum had taken a job in Karamat Hussain Girls College’s junior section in Lucknow. According to Z.A. Ahmad’s memoir, Sajjad Zaheer had started to practice law in Lucknow and was committed to the still underground communist party, K.M. Ashraf had started teaching, but was committed to the party’s directive, Mahmuduzzafar (Hajrah Begum’s cousin) was teaching at Islamia College in Amritsar, and he opted to be a party whole timer. Z.A. Ahmad left his job as the principal of a college in Hyderabad (Sindh) and decided to work for the party. Other members like Shaukat Omar, who was working for the Saigol Tea Company, for personal reasons did not want to leave his position but was willing to contribute to the party fund and provide other support. After this meeting, Hajrah Begum like her cousin Mahmud uz Zafar also became a whole timer. Hajrah Begum was recruited to work in the party office in Lucknow (typing, preparing notes, and documentation) under the directed supervision of the party’s secretary general, P.C. Joshi, whose identity was not known to her.
The entire extended clan in India around the late 1970s in Z.A. Ahmad’s official residence in Delhi. He was member of the Rajya Sabha in those days. Photo: Radha Khan.
Hajrah Begum and Z.A. Ahmad had known each other in London and eventually returned on the same ship from Britain with her son Sami. A growing understanding and common political commitments eventually led to their marriage on May 20, 1936. The marriage was solemnised by K.M. Ashraf (who had completed his PhD in Islamic history) and took place in Sajjad Zaheer’s home in Lucknow. The famous poet, Raghupati Sai Firagh Gorakhpuri was one of the witnesses. Soon the couple moved to Allahabad, as Ashraf and Z.A. Ahmad, along with other progressives like Rammanohar Lohia were given positions in Nehru’s kitchen cabinet when he was the president of the All-India Congress Committee. This was in keeping with the political line that members of the communist party (underground as it was) should work with anti-colonial forces. While Hajrah Begum continued her work with the underground communist party, she along with Rashid Jehan was also involved in organising the first All India Conference of the Progressive Writers’ Movement (Lucknow, 1936) where the famous writer Munshi Prem Chand gave the presidential address.
In Allahabad, she was part of a core group of young leaders who were working with the Congress Socialist Party (which was not banned), along with Z.A. Ahmed, K.M. Ashraf and Rammanohar Lohia; all of whom except Lohia were also members of the underground CPI. In this respect she had become one of the few early female members of the CPI. In Allahabad, she became active in organising railway coolies and press workers. By the late 1930s, she was working with the biri union, hawkers’ union, shop workers union, tin workers union and in eastern Uttar Pradesh (Azamgarh), and used this experience to organise tannery and textile workers in Kanpur. She was one of the first women from the communist party to work among farmers. She narrates in her interviews how she would walk miles in rural areas, travel the lowest class on trains, and sleep in mud huts on the floor with a single sheet. She always wore khadi (handloom) saris and lived and experienced the life of the people she was politically linked to, the underclass of towns and villages of British India. Speaking about women working on looms in villages of eastern UP (belonging to the Muslim julaha or weaver caste), she mentions how these women made the best saris, they were the bread earners of the family. Yet, like any other woman, the workers had to cook, take care of the children, attend to the demands of their husbands and in-laws and suffer all kinds of social oppression. It is these women she would organise for domestic rights, for better compensation of their products and for linking them with other women workers (industrial and rural) across the province.
In 1940, she became the organising secretary of the All-India Women’s Conference (AIWC), an organisation founded by educated and elite women committed to educational reform for women and children and to struggle for women’s rights. This was due to Hajrah Begum’s commitment to the cause of equal rights for men and women, rights for women in marriage and divorce, and equal compensation for women, especially in the industrial sector. In public forums, she raised issues related to the vagaries of housework and demanded the provision for creches in workspaces, along with maternity benefits for women workers. It is during this time that a debate also ensued within the now legal Communist Party (the ban on the party was lifted in 1942) on forming a women’s organisation. Although CPI’s all-male leadership would argue for women’s rights, they did not see a need for a separate group or women’s organisation. Even when senior leaders (like E.M.S. Nambroodripad, later the first elected chief minister of Kerala on a CPI ticket) circulated a paper within the party, advocating for women organisations and for the provision of lavatories and baths in rural areas, it was sarcastically referred as the “latrine document”. In contrast, Hajrah Begum in her writings in CPI outlets like People’sWar (QuamiJang) would argue for an all-India organisation for women that necessarily may not be a communist women’s organisation, but consist of women from the working classes, the peasantry, the lower middle classes, the teachers and ordinary people.
Hajrah Begum with Chinese delegates. Photo: Public domain.
Such an organisation was formed during the Bengal famine in the shape of the Mahila Atma Rakhsha Samiti (MARS) in Bengal. She travelled to Bengal during this time and reported first hand on the relief work done by the MARS, incorporating all classes of women, housewives, aunts, unmarried girls, the Calcutta elite and the peasant women from Barisal and Noakhali (both districts in East Bengal). While their men were at war, these women were committed to provide relief work and join the anti-colonial struggle. The famine and ensuing death and destruction in Bengal in the mid 1940s had opened the question of social justice and equality for all these women and they were ready to participate in their patriotic duty for justice and rights. This was not a unique case, Hajrah Begum had also witnessed and supported similar organisations, such as the Punjab Women’s Defence League based in Lahore which had similar aims as that of MARS.
It is during this time that she also edited the Urdu-Hindi Language organ of AIWC, Roshni. It is inspiring to read the fresh tone of editorials even almost 80 years after its publication. During the Partition violence, her editorials in Roshni were in solidarity with the plight of women, especially in Punjab. Her writings also made people aware of the need to unite against those who were dividing the people of the land. She emphasised that despite the violence and the division of the country, our commitment to the service for women will be the same and that we will continue to struggle against oppression of women on either side of the border.
After the division of British India, she and her husband did not migrate to Pakistan. It was a very difficult period for her as many close friends and family members (along with her elder brother whom she was very close to) did. Comrades like Syed Sajjad Zaheer were sent by the Party to Pakistan (he then returned in the 1950s after the decision on the Rawalpindi conspiracy case). K.M. Ashraf also came to Pakistan in 1948 and then left for the UK. But Z.A. Ahmad and Hajrah Begum continued to work with the CPI. Ahmad became the secretary general of the UP CPI and later represented the Party in the Indian parliament from the 1950s onwards for many years. Hajrah Begum herself continued to work within the Party and in the mid-fifties she ran for a position in the central committee of CPI. She eventually served as a member of the Central Control Commission of the Party; it was the top committee that deliberated on all complaints of anti-party behaviour. As a member of the Party, she was a participant at the World Peace Conference in Vienna in 1952 and became one of the founders of the National Federation of Indian Women (the women’s wing of CPI, as finally the Party had come around to the idea) and served as its general secretary from 1954 to 1962. Post-Independence in the 1950s and 60s she had several international travels representing the Party and continued to struggle against inflation and for women’s right to work.
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The life of a revolutionary couple is never easy. Throughout the late 1930s and the 1940s (even after Independence) both Hajrah Begum and Z.A. Ahmad were either organising peasants and workers, doing Party work or were being persecuted by the authorities. Their daughter Salima Raza (radio artist, theatre director, performer, writer, who lives in Mumbai) was born in 1939. In her interviews with me, she narrated how, till they moved to Delhi, in the mid 1950s, when her father became a parliamentarian, the family could only afford a one-room (not one bedroom) apartment. The storage room would at times serve as a kitchen. Further, due to her parent’s political activity she hardly lived in her own home until she completed her matriculation in the mid 1950s, studying in at least 14 schools and staying with dozens of family members, family friends and strangers. In the early 1940s she lived in Lahore with her paternal grandparents. This was a time when Z.A. Ahmad was imprisoned in the Deoli Camp and Hajrah Begum was working on other political fronts.
Hajrah, Salima and Ahmad. Photo: By arrangement with her family.
Salima Raza shared a story of when Hajrah Begum was arrested in 1949 (Nehru had decided to crack down on all communist activities) – she was a young girl of 10. Z.A. Ahmad was also underground and due to the radical leftward shift in CPI politics (under the influence of the then secretary general B.T. Ranadive) he had been suspended from party membership. One morning, Hajrah Begum, while living in Lucknow, asked her daughter to serve tea to the gentleman who was waiting for her to change. Soon Hajrah Begum emerged, gave the child Rs 5 and instructed the cycle rickshaw driver standing outside to take her daughter to Yashpal’s house (the famous Hindi writer). She instructed Salima Raza not to cry when she saw her mother leave in the parked car and told her that she should keep on raising the slogan “inquilab zindabad”. Hajrah Begum then got into a car that was waiting for her. She was in jail for the next five months and her daughter lived with family friends. Salima Raza remembers tears running down her cheeks, yet she continued to raise the slogan as long as she could see her mother’s car.
Despite hardships and the absences, there remained a deep bond of affection and care within the family and between Hajrah Begum and Z.A. Ahmad. In the late 1940s, when Ahmad was suspended from the party and was living underground in Lucknow, a friend arranged for the couple to meet. When they met, Hajrah Begum (who was still under the Party discipline) told Ahmad that the Party leader, Ranadive had ordered her to divorce Ahmad as he was not considered a true communist, but a revisionist. When Ahmad asked what Hajrah Begum had decided to do, she answered, “Marrying you was my own decision, the Party did not dictate me to marry you, and it cannot force me to divorce you either.” Ahmad writes in his memoirs how today this seems like a trivial issue, but in those days, it was unthinkable to not follow the Party directive.
Hajrah and Ahmad. Photo: By arrangement with her family.
This long-lasting relationship of political commitment, care and companionship ended with Ahmad’s passing in 1999. Salima Raza, while talking to me, mentioned an anecdote about her mother that exemplifies her deep affection for her husband. Once after the death of her father, Salima Raza asked her mother (who was slowly losing her memory), what her name was. She answered, “Hajrah Begum.”
Salima Raza said, “But your name is Hajrah Begum Ahmad.
“No my name is Hajra Begum,” the answer came back.
“Where is Dr. Ahmad?” her daughter asked. The reply was, “He may have gone to the parliament, or perhaps he may have gone to a meeting.”
Her daughter persisted, “But there is no meeting. People say that he has passed away, but what do you say?”
Hajrah Begum replied, “No, this has not happened, if it was so, he would have told me… If nothing else, he would have sent me a post card.”
Hajrah Begum, a person of immense courage, resilience, simplicity and sacrifice, passed away on January 20, 2003, after a prolonged period of illness. These few lines from a longer poem, My Nani Amma, by her grandson Aamer Raza, captures her beautifully.
But how many nanis risked their lives for freedom and justice
And walked till the blood ran all over their feet?
How many nanis defied all tradition
With utmost respect for all those around them.
How many nanis have lived their lives with absolute belief in the correctness of their convictions, yet never indoctrinated their children?
And how many nanis have done really cool stuff, like conquering the British Empire,
And leading women’s movements.
Not many, I imagine. I wouldn’t have known of those things,
For you wouldn’t give the game away
All I knew was that I was lucky to have you.
Kamran Asdar Ali teaches anthropology at the University of Texas, Austin.
Note: An earlier version of the piece had misidentified Abdul Jamil Khan. The error has been corrected.
source: http://www.thewire.in / The Wire / Home> English> Analysis> History / by Kamran Asdar Ali / August 16th, 2025
Bringing together scholars, political leaders, and community representatives, a two-day conference at the India Islamic Cultural Centre focused on deliberations surrounding the historical contributions of Muslims to India’s development. The event was organised by the Indian History Forum under the theme “Revisiting the Muslim Contribution to India’s History, Society and Civilization.”
The speakers underscored the importance of presenting an accurate and authentic understanding of history at a time when growing concerns are being raised over the distortion of historical narratives. Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor stated that it is essential to clearly distinguish between verified history and narratives that lack any factual basis. He further called for sustained efforts to ensure that society engages with history rooted in truth.
Delivering his address on “Who Writes Our Past? Reclaiming History, Interpretation, and India’s Plural Identity,” Shashi Tharoor said that he had been invited to speak on the question of who writes our past and described his presence at the annual National History Conference as a matter of great satisfaction. He observed that discussions on history are no longer confined to academia but have become part of public discourse in visible and consequential ways, unfolding not only in seminars, conferences, and classrooms but also in legislatures, courtrooms, television debates, and across social media platforms.
He said that the question of who writes our past is as relevant outside the classroom as within it, as it raises fundamental concerns about who has the authority to interpret the past, whose voices are heard, and how those interpretations shape the way a nation understands itself. He emphasised that history is not a settled body of knowledge but a field of ongoing research and interpretation, where each generation revisits, re-examines, and reshapes it.
Explaining the distinction between history and historiography, he noted that history refers to what happened, while historiography concerns the way those events are recorded, interpreted, and presented. He said that such interpretation is never entirely neutral and is shaped by perspective, by the questions asked, the sources used, and by power. He added that the struggle over history is, in many ways, a struggle over identity and belonging.
Referring to colonial historiography, he pointed out that British accounts interpreted India through the lens of empire, emphasising divisions and stagnation to justify colonial rule. He said such narratives legitimised conquest and shaped how Indians saw themselves. He further noted that nationalist leaders resisted not only political domination but also intellectual domination by reclaiming historical selfhood.
He said that in contemporary times, history continues to be revisited and contested, often shaped by present-day political purposes. He emphasised that history is not a fixed inheritance but an ongoing conversation, and the way that conversation is conducted has deep implications for national identity. Referring to India’s civilisational nature, he said it is not a single linear narrative but a layered and evolving story shaped by interaction and exchange, invoking Jawaharlal Nehru’s idea of a palimpsest and Rabindranath Tagore’s idea of India rooted in plurality.
Syed Sadatullah Husaini, President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, delivered his keynote address, emphasising that the real purpose of the conference is to understand the history of India from the right perspective. He said that history is very important for any nation and that every nation lives twice, once in reality and once in memory, with reality following memory. He stressed that nations are defined not only by achievements but also by what they remember and what they forget, making it essential that memory remains accurate.
He said that history is not merely nostalgia or information but a source of guidance and civilisational wisdom. He emphasised that history should be understood with neutrality and realism and should not be interpreted based on personal likes and dislikes or reduced to binaries of hero and villain, as such approaches harm collective memory.
He noted that the present global situation reflects a post-truth condition where the difference between truth and falsehood has become minimal, and history is increasingly curated, amplified, and weaponised through digital platforms. He warned that such distorted history misguides society, promotes polarisation, and weakens the nation.
He identified three ways in which history is distorted: deletion, distortion, and generalisation. He pointed out that large parts of Muslim history are being erased, misrepresented, or generalised into stereotypes. He said that revisiting history is not about glorifying any community but about restoring truth and presenting facts accurately.
He emphasised that Muslims are not marginal to Indian history but are co-authors of its civilisational journey, contributing to economic, cultural, and intellectual development. He highlighted contributions in trade, knowledge exchange, institutions, languages like Urdu, and social development, stating that these connections enriched Indian civilisation and connected it with the wider world.
He further said that the most significant contribution lies in the principles of Islam, particularly the message of unity of humanity, which fostered social cohesion. Quoting Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, he emphasised the shared civilisational journey and called the conference the beginning of a movement to bring truth back into public discourse.
Dr. Shadab Moosa, Convener of the Conference, in his inaugural address, highlighted key challenges in the study and dissemination of history. He said that across universities, professors, and research scholars, three major problems have emerged. The first is the spread of superficial, misinformed, and propagandist narratives through digital platforms and social media.
He pointed out that alongside this, changes in educational curricula, including NCERT and university syllabi, are altering the pattern of study and research. He stressed that this is a critical issue that needs correction through objective narratives.
He further noted that historical representation in museums, archives, and public spaces also reflects bias and marginalisation. Citing examples, he said that key figures are often excluded from representation, leading to incomplete public understanding of history.
He identified the second major challenge as the gap between academic research and public understanding. He said that historians have produced extensive scholarly work, but it remains confined to academic circles and does not reach the masses. Bridging this gap and making history accessible is essential.
The third challenge, he said, is interpretation. Writing history is one thing, but interpreting it correctly is equally important. He pointed out that colonial frameworks and communal narratives continue to influence historical understanding. He called for a balanced, centrist approach that avoids ideological extremes and presents history objectively.
Senior Congress leader and party’s national spokesperson, Gurdeep Singh Sappal, said that despite misinformation and attempts to rewrite history, awareness of figures like Jyotiba Phule is increasing. He said history has always been shaped by those in power, but today’s challenge is different due to the role of social media algorithms in shaping perceptions.
He described the emergence of a “false memory infrastructure,” where algorithms create echo chambers and influence emotions, shaping public opinion. He pointed out that global political trends, including leaders like Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, reflect similar patterns. He emphasised that ordinary citizens must actively participate in creating and sharing factual content to counter misinformation.
Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha reflected on society, history, and democracy through personal anecdotes and literary references. He warned that electoral victories alone cannot ensure the survival of a nation if the social fabric is weakened by distorted history and divisions.
He emphasised the importance of preserving inclusive history and recalled figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. He cautioned that present conditions resemble the period of Partition and urged society to remain vigilant and reflective.
Former MP Mohammad Adeeb criticised the distorted writing of history, warning that it misguides future generations and harms social harmony. He stressed the need to protect authentic history and raised concerns about growing prejudice and attempts to erase certain historical periods, including Mughal history, which he said could also impact understanding of other communities’ histories.
Author and journalist Ashok Kumar Pandey discussed the relationship between media and history, highlighting how selective representation shapes public memory. He explained that media narratives often create distorted images, citing the example of Kashmir, where coverage focuses on conflict while ignoring everyday life.
He also criticised the use of unverified social media content as research and pointed out that debates on television often lack informed perspectives. He emphasised that repeated exposure to selective narratives leads people to accept them as truth, especially when they align with existing beliefs. He called for critical thinking and responsible engagement with history.
The conference concluded with a call for collective responsibility in preserving truth and promoting an objective understanding of history. Speakers urged students and citizens to engage critically with historical narratives and ensure that truth prevails in public discourse. They described the conference as the beginning of a broader movement to reclaim history and strengthen India’s plural identity.
source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Education / by India Tomorrow / April 12th, 2026
Syed Sadatullah Husaini, a prominent Islamic Scholar, speaks at an event organised by the Indian History Forum at the India Islamic Cultural Centre in New Delhi on April 11, 2026.
The Indian History Forum hosted a two-day event in Delhi on April 11 and 12, highlighting the contributions of Muslims to Indian history. Several scholars, intellectuals, academicians and Parliamentarians took part and delivered insightful speeches at the event. For the benefit of its readers, India Tomorrow has serialised the full texts of selected speeches by some of the event’s most prominent speakers.
Here is the full text of the speech delivered by Syed Sadatullah Husaini, a prominent Islamic scholar, who happens to be the patron of the Indian History Forum.
“The real purpose of the conference is to understand the history of India from the right perspective. History is very important for any nation. It is said that every nation lives twice, once in reality and once in memory. Reality follows memory. Today’s reality will be shaped by our memories.
Every nation is defined not only by its achievements but also by its memory, what it chooses to remember and what it tends to forget. Therefore, it is important that we remember correctly. Our memory should be accurate. History is not merely nostalgia; it is not just information. It is a source of guidance. It is a source of civilisational wisdom in the light of which we embark on our journey today.
So, ladies and gentlemen, this conference is not just an event. In fact, there is a greater purpose behind it. Our country, India, should not forget an important part of its history. Collective amnesia should not make us victims of collective oblivion. The disease of oblivion is harmful to an individual, and similarly, it is harmful to nations.
The benefits of history and memory are conditional, and I am very happy that today’s learned speakers have shed light on these conditions, what constitutes the right history and what kind of research is needed to benefit from history. It is important that history is read and understood with neutrality.
History should be viewed with realism. It should not be interpreted based on personal likes and dislikes. It should not be reduced to dividing characters into binaries of hero and villain. All these approaches harm our collective memory. Therefore, history should be written and understood with seriousness so that it becomes a true source of guidance.
Why is there a need to look at history in this way? Our speakers have shed light on this from different perspectives. Some challenges are global in nature, while others are rooted in our country’s specific political context.
As far as the global situation is concerned, we are living in a time when the difference between truth and falsehood has become minimal, a post-truth condition. Some have rightly observed that history is no longer being written; it is being curated, amplified, and weaponised.
History is curated, amplified, and weaponised. It is distributed on a large scale through algorithms and filtered through the lenses of likes and dislikes. Such history does not enlighten; rather, it misguides the nation. It does not contribute to nation-building but instead leads to polarisation and division, ultimately weakening the nation. This is precisely what we are witnessing in our country today.
If history is reduced to propaganda, society is deprived of its memory and its ability to think critically. Therefore, we believe that a serious and sincere study of history, a genuine search for truth and factual accuracy, is the responsibility of every citizen. It is their duty. Supporting this responsibility is the real purpose of this conference and this movement.
The central theme of this conference, as you all know, is the contribution of Muslims in Indian history. We believe that this issue has become one of the most problematic areas due to distortion. History is not only distorted by what is written but also by what is omitted.
There are three ways to distort reality: deletion, distortion, and generalisation. Deleting facts and erasing them from memory is one method. Distorting facts is another. And generalising, turning specific instances into stereotypes, is the third way of destroying truth.
Today, history is being subjected to all three forms of distortion. A large part of Muslim history is being deleted, from textbooks, discussions, debates, and the collective memory of the country. Another large part is being distorted and presented inaccurately, often through powerful mediums like films. Meanwhile, the media frequently engages in generalisation.
For instance, if there is an incident involving an attack on a temple, it is generalised into the claim that Muslims destroyed temples everywhere and built mosques over them. Such narratives distort reality. We want to revisit history, not to glorify any community, but to restore truth and present historical facts accurately. This is the real objective of this conference.
It has been rightly mentioned that the history of Muslims in India is not a marginal story. Rather, it has played a central role in the making of this country. Muslims are not appendices to Indian history; they are co-authors of its civilisational journey.
They did not come as invaders like later colonial powers such as the British. Rather, they came as contributors and builders. They did not plunder the country or transfer its wealth elsewhere. Instead, they contributed to its growth and progress.
The discussions and exhibitions in this conference will demonstrate that the story of Muslims in India is a story of connections, economic, cultural, and intellectual. They connected India with the wider world and facilitated interaction among different communities within the country. This exchange enriched Indian civilisation and elevated it to new heights.
The theme of Oceanic Islam highlights how the Indian Ocean became not just a body of water but a highway of ideas, ethics, and coexistence through Muslim networks.
When we talk about history, we often focus on rulers, the chronology of battles, dynasties, and empires. However, real history is the history of society, the life of the common people. This social history is rich and meaningful.
Through this conference, you will learn how Muslims built institutions, advanced knowledge and sciences, developed arts and skills, and contributed to languages and literature. You will see how markets, ethics, traditions, and everyday life were shaped, and how these contributions made the country prosperous and culturally vibrant.
As highlighted earlier, Muslims connected India to a global knowledge network. While India had ancient traditions of philosophy and learning, these were once confined within the region. Through translation movements, intellectual exchanges, and synthesis of traditions during periods like the Abbasid era, Indian knowledge became global.
In the domain of economy and trade, India once (during Mughal period) contributed nearly 30% to global GDP, with a significant share in world industrial production. We will explore how such achievements were made possible.
Muslims also established inclusive markets where people of all castes and communities could participate equally. The emergence of languages like Urdu, through the fusion of Sanskrit, Arabic, and Persian, symbolised cultural synthesis and intellectual exchange.
In governance and institutions, contributions included revenue systems, urban development, and infrastructure. Special sessions will also highlight women’s contributions and their empowerment within the framework of Islamic teachings.
While all these contributions are important, I believe the most significant contribution of Muslims to this country lies in the principles of Islam, especially the message of Tauheed, the belief in One God, which also brought the message of the unity of humanity.
This principle created a deep bond among people. Allama Iqbal described it beautifully as Wahdat Khaiz Quwwat, the unifying force of Islam. In a land of diverse cultures, customs, and communities, this principle fostered unity and a sense of shared identity.
This unity was not merely political but social and civilisational, bringing together different peoples into a cohesive whole. It played a vital role in shaping the historical unity of the Indian subcontinent.
In this context, I would like to recall the words of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad from his historic address:
“We brought our treasure with us. This land was also full of treasures. We shared what we had, and it opened its treasures to us. We gave it the most precious gift it needed, the message of democracy and human equality.”
Respected elders and friends, this conference is not merely an academic exercise or a presentation of papers. It is the beginning of a movement, a movement to bring truth back into public discourse.
The truth must reach every heart. The veil of falsehood that has covered it must be lifted. Only then can we protect the unity, culture, and history of our country.
I call upon all of you, especially the students, to take up this responsibility, to carry this message of truth to every corner of the country.
This is the purpose of this conference, and I hope it marks the beginning of an important movement.
Thank you very much.”
source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Education / by India Tomorrow / April 12th, 2026
The Indian History Forum hosted a two-day event in Delhi on April 11 and 12, highlighting the contributions of Muslims to Indian history. Several scholars, intellectuals, academicians and Parliamentarians took part and delivered insightful speeches at the event. For the benefit of its readers, India Tomorrow is serialising the full texts of selected speeches by some of the event’s most prominent speakers.
Here is the full text of the speech delivered by Dr Shadab Moosa, convener of the Indian History Forum:
“From Bengal to Gujarat, and from Kerala to Delhi, across universities, among professors, and with students pursuing PhDs and postdoctoral research, our interactions revealed a clear pattern. When we engaged with them and examined the challenges in the study of history, it became evident that there are three major problems.
The first problem, which you and I are well aware of, is that a very superficial, misinformed, and propagandist narrative of history is reaching our screens, mobile phones, and social media day and night. But if you look beyond this level, even if you have a little interest in history, whether you are a teacher, someone who teaches or designs a syllabus, someone related to NCERT, or among those who read serious media, you will see that alongside this, changes in NCERT and in school, college, and university history syllabi are altering the entire pattern of study and research. We understand that this is a very important and critical issue that needs to be identified, corrected, and given a proper objective narrative.
This is our primary duty. Beyond that, if you are an ordinary person, you must have visited a history museum with your family, taken your children to museums, or visited archaeological monuments. You will see that from museums to archives, from archaeological sites to the guides who show you around, history is a major issue everywhere. When we went t the Victoria Museum in Kolkata, it was a very magnificent museum.
If you go to that museum, you can feel that you have entered the colonial era. When you go to the first floor and observe the exhibits, you will see that the heroes of the First War of Independence of 1857 have been depicted there. However, you will find every person represented except the Muslims.
You will find every leader’s photo except those who led the 1857, those who played the most important and leading role in that movement. When we observed this phenomenon in many places, we motivated some of our research scholars to conduct a study of Indian museums to examine the extent of marginalisation and fake narratives present in them.
It is not a big deal to spread misinformation on WhatsApp today, but when it reaches Aasar-e-Qadeema(archaeology) and when those historical remains are manipulated, then there are serious problems. We have visited 50 universities in India where history is taught, and a syllabus is followed.
What is the challenge in these universities? When we talk about Muslim history, plural history, or objective history, the major challenge we identified is that within these universities, history is divided into three major domains: ancient, medieval, and modern history.
The most contested zone is medieval history. There are no contemporaries of medieval history, and there is a lack of new students interested in it. As a result, when someone attempts to discuss medieval history after 50 years, we face a crisis where there are very few students, PhD scholars, or post-doctorate researchers in this field.
The Indian History Forum will try to fill this gap. When discussing medieval history, we must understand that it is not just history. To understand it, you need knowledge of the Persian language, geography, and climate. History is not just about individuals or buildings; it is about language, geography, and culture.
When this culture becomes a geographical entity that we call Indian culture, and when we aim to present an objective and plural narrative, we must strive for a centrist approach. We do not want to lean left or right, but instead bring history to an objective and balanced position.
The second major challenge we identified is that historians have done immense work. People have dedicated their entire lives to writing books and conducting remarkable research. Professors have worked for 30 to 40 years and are the guiding lights of our nation. Their books are luminaries that continue to illuminate the field of history.
However, the biggest challenge is bringing this intellectual and academic work, often filled with jargon, into the public domain. Making it accessible as popular history and embedding it into public consciousness is what the Indian History Forum seeks to achieve.
Today, through fake narratives spread every minute and every second via algorithms, people’s minds and, consequently, societal behaviour are being manipulated. This manipulation is changing social psychology, which in turn is reshaping the political identity of the nation. This is a serious concern.
We often wonder how long we can keep responding to fake narratives. If you answer today, a new question arises tomorrow; if you answer tomorrow, another appears the next day. This becomes a never-ending cycle.
But there is a simple solution: if you want to make a line appear smaller, draw a bigger line next to it. That bigger line is the recognition that in the thousand-year span of medieval history, Indian Muslims have made immense contributions, in universities, science and development, civic infrastructure, city-building, food and cuisine, women’s leadership, and economic development.
Their role was so significant that India once had the highest GDP in the world. The Indian History Forum aims to bridge the gap between the common masses and historical texts and promote an objective understanding of history.
The third and final challenge is interpretation. Writing history is one thing, but interpreting it correctly is equally important. Without an objective lens, history cannot be understood properly. Whether one leans right or left, problems arise.
We recognise two major ideological challenges in revisiting history. The first is the colonial framework. Much of today’s biased and propagandist history traces back 150 years to British historians like James Mill, Henry Elliot, and John Davison, who wrote highly biased and communal accounts. These narratives continue to influence modern interpretations, whether in academic writing, media, or social platforms.
The second challenge is communal narratives. We must understand that this country has a thousand-year history marked by love, education, development, and harmony. It is a legacy where cultures evolved, people learned to live together, and India emerged as a global leader in philosophy, culture, food, clothing, and education.
The Indian History Forum will work across all these areas. Inshallah, through our conferences, prominent professors and historians will engage with you. Our programmes will focus on four major areas.
First, we will examine economic contributions, how economic systems, currency, mechanisms, land reforms, agricultural revolutions, and trade routes were developed, and how India’s goods and influence reached global markets. A strong regulatory economic system based on justice, equality, and moral integrity enabled India to become a prosperous nation.
Next, we will discuss the contributions of women and highlight the extraordinary roles they played. Following that, we will explore urban planning, administration, and infrastructure.
For example, building large cities in medieval India required advanced systems, water management, security, technology, and architectural innovation. These were not simple tasks but complex achievements.
We will also examine key industries. For instance, while the British introduced railways, the development of steam engine technology suitable for India’s diverse terrain required local adaptation. Unlike Europe’s plains, India’s geography demanded advanced engineering solutions.
This thousand-year history remains one of the most significant aspects of our past. We aim to establish an objective and centrist narrative. With such a perspective, we welcome you and hope that you will find this programme intellectually enriching and engaging.”
As reported in India Tomorrow
source: http://www.radiancenews.com / Radiance News / Home> Features / by Radiance News Bureau – As reported in India Tomorrow / April 13th, 2026
Syed Sarwar Chishty (wearing a scarf) inaugurates an exhibition on the contributions of Indian Muslims to India’s history, society, and civilization by cutting the ribbon at the headquarters of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind in New Delhi on April 14, 2026.
New Delhi :
At a time when efforts are being made at governmental level to erase the contributions of Indian Muslims and Islam to the glorious history of India, the Indian History Forum organised a unique exhibition titled “The Woven Land: A Visual Narrative of Muslim History in India” at the headquarters of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, exploring the historical contributions of Muslims to India’s civilizational journey.
The exhibition was formally inaugurated on Tuesday in presence of several prominent personalities, including Syed Sadatullah Husaini, President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind; Maulana Syed Sarwar Chishty, Secretary of the Anjuman Committee of Ajmer Sharif Dargah; Maulana Asghar Ali Imam Mehdi, President of the Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadees Hind, Senior Supreme Court advocate M R Shamshad, apart from other community leaders and intellectuals.
The exhibition will remain open to the public until 19 April 2026, from 10 am to 9 pm daily. Since its inauguration, it has witnessed significant participation, with visitors from different walks of life attending the event.
The exhibition presents an expansive visual narrative tracing the arrival of Islam in India and highlighting its multifaceted contributions across various fields. Through a series of well-curated displays and models, it brings to light the role of Muslims in education, trade, social equality, women’s empowerment, and the translation of classical texts. It also showcases contributions in architecture, culture, medicine, language development, as well as advancements in science and astronomy.
Dr. Shadab Moosa, Convener of Indian History Forum, explained the conceptual framework of the exhibition, stating that prevailing narratives often claim that Muslims came to India, demolished temples, and forced conversions. The exhibition, he said, attempts to visually reconstruct how Muslims arrived, built settlements, constructed mosques, and developed architectural forms while integrating into local environments.
The first section of the exhibition presents scenes of early Muslim arrival in Kerala, including depictions of boats reaching the shore. It highlights that Muslims initially came as merchants, engaging in trade and establishing settlements. A strong focus is placed on their interaction with local communities, particularly marginalized groups, showing how justice-oriented business practices influenced these engagements. The exhibition traces a continuous coastal cultural pattern from Gujarat to Malabar, Chennai, Vizag, and Kolkata, demonstrating linguistic and cultural integration across regions such as Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali, and even parts of Assam.
Dr. Moosa emphasized that the exhibition highlights Islam’s ability to integrate within a plural society and accommodate diverse practices. One display shows the inclusion of Dalits in market spaces where their access was historically restricted, indicating social changes associated with Muslim presence.
Another section focuses on mosque construction, displaying models that illustrate the fusion of Indian architectural styles with Islamic ethics and theology. A prominent exhibit includes the model of the Cheraman Mosque in Kerala. Coastal trade routes are also mapped, showing the movement of goods, services, and people.
The exhibition further explores the spread of Islam through Sufi saints, mapping their routes across India. Colour-coded pins mark sea routes, historical sites, libraries, observatories, trading hubs, and Sufi centres. A notable highlight is a Sanskrit document describing mosque architecture, referred to as “Rehmana Prasada” or “Rehman Ki Ibadat Gah,” reflecting the blending of Indic and Islamic traditions. References are also made to structures such as the Qutub complex, Barwada Mosque, and Goga Mosque.
The education section depicts the close relationship between mosques and learning centres. It highlights linguistic synthesis between Arabic and regional languages like Malayalam. Models of institutions such as Madrasa Feroz Shahi during the reign of Sultan Feroz Shah and Madrasa Mehmood Gawand of the Bahmani dynasty are displayed, along with institutions established during the time of Usman Ali Khan.
Scientific contributions are also featured prominently. A painting shows Raja Jai Singh drawing inspiration from Ulugh Baig’s astronomical work to establish Jantar Mantar. Exhibits include instruments such as the astrolabe, celestial globe, and telescope, emphasizing the contributions of Muslim scholars to astronomy.
The exhibition also traces the development of educational institutions, noting that present-day Delhi University originated as Madrasa Ghaziuddin, where students from diverse backgrounds studied. Libraries, including the Raza Library, are highlighted for their role in translation movements that advanced scientific knowledge.
Medical advancements are presented through displays showing the synthesis of Greek, Indian, and Arabic medical traditions. The role of Tipu Sultan is also emphasized, particularly his efforts in promoting translation movements and knowledge exchange.
Industrial and economic contributions form another major segment. The exhibition discusses innovations in steam engine technology adapted to Indian terrain, developments in shipbuilding that made India a global leader in the 19th century, and the establishment of infrastructure such as roads, highways, and caravan-serais.
Urban development is explored through examples of cities such as Shahjahanabad(now called Delhi), Hyderabad, Lucknow, Aurangabad, and Ajmer, which flourished due to advancements in water systems, security arrangements, and architectural planning. Agricultural reforms during the Delhi Sultanate, including land measurement and irrigation systems, are also highlighted.
The exhibition concludes by presenting the evolution of standardized currency systems that enabled international trade, along with administrative and moral frameworks of the Mughal period, where both Muslims and non-Muslims contributed to governance. It illustrates how these systems supported India’s economic prosperity, often described historically as making the country a “golden bird.”
Overall, the exhibition offers a detailed visual narrative of Muslim contributions to India’s cultural, scientific, and economic history.
source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Education / by India Tomorrow / April 14th, 2026
Madrasa Ghaziuddin, which was developed into Delhi College
In recent years, renewed public debate over India’s past has led many researchers and writers to revisit historical records with greater care. In the course of examining Muslim contributions to India’s development – across administration, education, and public institutions – numerous well-documented examples have surfaced that rarely appear in mainstream narratives.
One such finding concerns the institutional origin of Delhi College. What is widely remembered as a colonial-era institution turns out, on closer examination, to be rooted in a much older educational ecosystem established during the Mughal period. The story of its evolution offers a concrete, record-based insight into how Muslim-supported institutions contributed to the foundations of modern education in India.1
A Centre of Learning Before the Colonial Era
The story begins in 1696 with the establishment of Madrasa Ghaziuddin near Ajmeri Gate in Delhi. The madrasa was founded by Ghaziuddin Khan Feroze Jung I, a senior Mughal noble. Like many institutions of its time, it was supported through private endowments made by its founder rather than through direct imperial administration.2
This form of elite patronage was common in Mughal India, where members of the ruling class supported centres of learning as a civic responsibility. Education was viewed as essential to governance, legal administration, and social order. Madrasa Ghaziuddin functioned as a centre of higher learning during a period when Delhi served as both an administrative capital and an intellectual hub.3
What Was Actually Taught
Historical records indicate that Madrasa Ghaziuddin followed a structured and multidisciplinary curriculum. Alongside Islamic Studies, students were trained in Persian and Arabic, principal languages of administration and scholarship in Mughal India. Instruction also included logic, philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy, disciplines required for legal reasoning, governance, and intellectual inquiry.4
Islamic Studies at the madrasa did not operate as isolated theology. Ethical principles such as honesty, truthfulness, accountability, and justice formed part of the intellectual framework. These values were not abstract ideals but practical standards expected of scholars, administrators, and judges trained in such institutions. Historians note that this ethical grounding was a defining feature of Islamic education and remains emphasised in madrasa traditions today.5
The curriculum reflected societal needs rather than doctrinal preservation. It prepared individuals to think critically and administer public affairs – an aspect often overlooked in contemporary portrayals of madrasa education.
Political Change Without Intellectual Collapse
The late 18th and early 19th centuries brought major political upheaval to Delhi. With the weakening of Mughal authority and the British takeover of the city in 1803, traditional systems of patronage declined. Many educational institutions suffered from reduced funding and administrative disruption, and Madrasa Ghaziuddin was no exception.6
However, the complex was not dismantled. British authorities recognised both its strategic location near Ajmeri Gate and its educational potential. Instead of being erased, the site was repurposed, challenging the notion that pre-colonial institutions were universally dismissed as obsolete by colonial administrators.7
The Delhi College Phase: Adaptation Over Erasure
In the early decades of the 19th century, the Ajmeri Gate complex began hosting what came to be known as Delhi College. Operating from the same premises, the institution introduced English education and Western scientific disciplines while drawing upon the existing scholarly environment.8
This phase represented adaptation rather than rupture. Delhi College did not emerge from the rejection of indigenous learning systems but from their reorganisation under new political and intellectual conditions. Indian scholars continued to play an active role, and the institution became a site of intellectual exchange rather than simple replacement.
While Delhi College was later relocated to the Kashmiri Gate area, the Ajmeri Gate campus continued as an educational institution and today functions as Zakir Husain Delhi College, preserving the site’s long academic lineage.9
Translation and the Spread of Knowledge
One of the most significant contributions associated with Delhi College was its role in translating scientific and philosophical works into Urdu. At a time when English education was limited to a small elite, translation became a key mechanism for widening access to modern knowledge.10
Through this process, new technical vocabulary was developed, enabling emerging ideas in science, law, and philosophy to be discussed in an Indian language familiar to a broader population. Historians regard this translation movement as central to the dissemination of modern knowledge in 19th-century North India.11
The case of Delhi College demonstrates that modern education in India did not spread solely through English. It also travelled through Indian languages, mediated by scholars who navigated multiple intellectual traditions.
Rethinking the Role of Muslim Institutions
The history of Delhi College complicates the claim that modern education in India began exclusively with colonial intervention. Long before British reforms, Muslim-supported institutions had already established systems of learning that combined ethics, reason, and practical knowledge.12
This does not imply that pre-colonial education was identical to modern systems, nor does it deny the influence of colonial reforms. Rather, it highlights continuity – an often-overlooked dimension of Indian educational history. Muslim rulers and elites invested in institutions that served society at large, extending education beyond religious instruction into administration, law, and science.
Why This History is Often Missing
The marginalisation of such histories reflects narrowing of public discourse rather than a lack of evidence. Over time, complex institutional developments have been reduced to simple binaries: traditional versus modern, religious versus secular, pre-colonial versus progressive.
Historians caution that such simplifications obscure the layered realities of India’s past. When Muslim institutions are discussed only in theological terms, their civic and intellectual roles disappear from view, limiting informed historical understanding.13
History as Record, Not Rhetoric
The evolution of Delhi College from a Mughal-era madrasa demonstrates that Muslim contributions to India’s development were institutional, ethical, and intellectual. Recognising this history does not require ideological alignment or nostalgia. It requires attention to documented records.
As India revisits its past through research, conferences, and public discussion, cases like Delhi College underscore the value of evidence-based history. The record reveals continuity, adaptation, and contribution – elements essential to any honest account of the nation’s development.
Endnotes
Percival Spear, Delhi: Its Monuments and History
Syed Mahmud, History of Muslim Education in India
Muzaffar Alam, The Languages of Political Islam in India
Francis Robinson, The Ulama of Farangi Mahall and Islamic Culture
Barbara Metcalf, Islamic Revival in British India
C.A. Bayly, Indian Society and the Making of the British Empire
William Dalrymple, The Last Mughal
Delhi College archival records (19th century)
Zakir Husain Delhi College, official institutional history
Christopher Bayly, Empire and Information
Oxford University Press studies on Delhi College
Irfan Habib, Medieval India: The Study of a Civilization
Romila Thapar, The Past as Present
source: http://www.radiancenews.com / Radiance News / Home> Features> Focus / by Mohammad Talha Siddi Bapa / March 13th, 2026
Nearly two years after the massive landslides that struck Kerala’s Wayanad district, the state government on Sunday handed over houses to survivors at a rehabilitation township in Kalpetta, with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan distributing title deeds to 178 families in the first phase of the ₹299-crore project.
The township, located over 20 kilometres from the worst-affected villages of Chooralmala and Mundakkai, has been built on 64 hectares of land acquired from Elston Tea Estate and is expected to accommodate around 1,600 people across 410 houses. The first phase, comprising 178 houses, was inaugurated on Sunday.
Each house is built on seven cents (3,049 sq ft) of land and is a single-storey, 1,000-square-foot unit. The structures are designed keeping Wayanad’s terrain and climate in mind and include provisions for an additional floor if families choose to expand. Every house features a master bedroom, two additional rooms, a living room, a study, a dining area, a kitchen, storage space, and a sit-out.
Beyond housing, the township will include roads, a health centre, an anganwadi, a market, children’s play areas, a sports club, common halls, an open-air theatre, and a memorial to honour those who lost their lives.
Chief Minister Vijayan had laid the foundation stone for the township on March 27 last year. Around 1,500 workers worked round the clock to complete the first phase in less than a year.
On Sunday, beneficiaries received not only title deeds but also ownership certificates and connections for electricity and water. The government has announced that utility bills will be covered until June.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan described the handover of houses under the Wayanad rehabilitation project as a symbol of collective resilience and solidarity.
“Words fall short to describe this emotion. Rising above those who ignored and undermined us, an entire state came together to wipe the tears of our brothers and sisters. Today, as we hand over the first phase of the Wayanad Model Township, 178 homes, to the survivors of Mundakkai and Chooralmala, it stands as a powerful testament to Keralam’s resilience,” Vijayan said.
He noted that despite challenges and delays in receiving rightful aid, the state remained united in supporting those affected.
“Even when rightful aid was denied, we did not back down; we held each other closer. This is our Keralam,” he said.
The Indian Union Muslim League also handed over 51 houses constructed under the first phase of its rehabilitation initiative for families affected by the Chooralmala landslide in Wayanad district on Saturday.
IUML State president Panakkad Syed Sadikali Shihab Thangal distributed the keys at a function held at Vellithode near Thrikkaipetta in Wayanad, with Sharada becoming the first beneficiary to receive the key.
Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said she was proud of the collective efforts across political parties in rehabilitating survivors of the Wayanad landslides.
“The day before yesterday, we laid the foundation stone for the 100 houses we promised. This morning, I visited the houses built by the government, and this evening I am here to acknowledge the IUML’s monumental efforts in providing homes to help survivors rebuild their lives,” she said at the event.
The July 2024 landslides claimed 298 lives, destroyed 59 houses completely, and rendered hundreds more uninhabitable.
In the immediate aftermath, 2,569 people from 728 families were housed in 17 relief camps across Wayanad. The government later facilitated relocation to rented homes, covering rental expenses from the state exchequer.
Livelihood assistance was extended to 752 families at ₹9,000 per month for one earning member and to 507 families at ₹18,000 per month for two members. Twenty-one children who lost both parents received total assistance of ₹2.10 crore. Additionally, 858 families continue to receive monthly food coupons worth ₹1,000.
source: http://www.maktoobmedia.com / MaktoobMedia.com / Home> India / by Maktoob Staff / March 12th, 2026
