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Siddique Ahmad

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Khatib-e-Azam
Siddique Ahmad
ছিদ্দিক আহমদ
Born1903
Chakaria
Died19 May 1987(1987-05-19) (aged 83–84)
Alma mater
Known forPolitics
Children12
Parents
  • Sheikh Muhammad Ojihullah Minaji (father)
  • Zubaida Khatun (mother)
Main interest(s)Politics
Religious life
DenominationSunni
SchoolHanafi
MovementDeobandi
Senior posting
Teacher
Disciple of
Students

Siddique Ahmad (1903 – 19 May 1987) was a 20th-century Bangladeshi Islamic scholar and politician, widely known as Khatib-e-Azam for his oratory skills. He was elected to the Provincial Assembly of East Pakistan in 1954 and later held key positions in the Nizam-e-Islam Party, serving as Secretary-General and Vice President. In the late 1960s, when the party merged with the Pakistan Democratic Party, he opposed the merger and revived the original organization under the name Markazi Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Nizam-i-Islam, once again serving as Secretary-General and contesting the 1970 general elections. He did not support the Bangladesh Liberation War, and after the country's independence, he was imprisoned for 22 months and faced a ban on Islamist political activity. Following the lifting of the ban, he resumed his political activities as the founding chairman of the Islamic Democratic League and later reestablished his own party as the Bangladesh Nezame Islam Party, serving as its president. He also held the position of Sheikh al-Hadith at Al Jamia Al Islamia Patiya and was Secretary-General of Anjuman-e-Ittihadul Madaris Bangladesh.

Early background

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Siddique Ahmad was born in 1903 in the village of Baraitali, located in the Chakaria Upazila of Cox’s Bazar district, Bangladesh.[1] His father’s name was Sheikh Muhammad Ojihullah Minaji, and his mother was Zubaida Khatun.[2] He initially received Quranic and primary Bengali education from his family teacher, Naderuzzaman.[3] Afterwards, he enrolled at the local Baraitali Primary School, where he studied up to class four. He completed his fifth and sixth grades at home under a private tutor and at Chakaria High School, respectively. Later, he was admitted to Satkania Ideal High School for class seven.[4] During this period, under the leadership of Mohammad Ali Jauhar and Mahatma Gandhi, the Khilafat and Non-Cooperation movements began. Ahmad left school to join these movements as a volunteer.[5] After the Khilafat movement ended, he enrolled at Chakaria Shaharbil Senior Madrasa, where he completed the study of introductory Arabic grammar books within one year. He then joined Darul Uloom Hathazari. He also privately studied the book Maibuzi under Muhammad Faizullah.[6]

In 1926, Ahmad went to study at Mazahir Uloom in India and received the Dawra-e-Hadith degree. In 1929, he pursued higher studies at Darul Uloom Deoband, India, focusing on theology, ancient astronomy, philosophy, law, and logic.[7] At Hathazari, his teachers included Saeed Ahmad Sandwipi, Muhammad Faizullah, and Shah Abdul Wahhab. At Deoband, he studied under Izaz Ali Amrohi, Ibrahim Balyawi, Muhammad Shafi, and Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi. At Mazahir Uloom, his teacher was Zakariyya Kandhlawi.[8][9] Ahmad first received spiritual instruction and Khilafat (spiritual succession) from Muhammad Faizullah.[10][11] He also received Khilafat from Asghar Hussain Deobandi and Ahmadur Rahman of Satkania. During his studies at Mazahir Uloom, he frequently visited Ashraf Ali Thanwi and remained under his guidance for 40 days after completing Dawra-e-Hadith, during which he pledged allegiance (Bai’at) to him.[12]

Teaching career

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After completing his formal education, Ahmad spent 44 years in teaching.[13] Upon returning from Deoband, he began his teaching career in 1931–32 with a one-year tenure at Anwarul Uloom Madrasa in Shaharbil, Chakaria, located in the Cox’s Bazar district.[14] In 1932, he joined Darul Uloom Hathazari as a Hadith instructor, where he served for approximately 14 years until 1944, during which he also briefly held responsibilities in the Fatwa department.[13] Following the death of Habibullah Qurayshi in 1945, Ahmad resigned from Hathazari and rejoined Anwarul Uloom Madrasa in Shaharbil, where he taught for another three years until 1947. In 1948, he began teaching at Kakara Islamia Madrasa in Chakaria upazila of Cox’s Bazar, where he taught advanced classes for four years.[13] Later, in 1953, he established a madrasa named Faizul Uloom in his native village of Baraitali, named after his teacher Muhammad Faizullah, and served as its principal for 12 years.[15] In 1966, at the invitation of Azizul Haque, he joined Al Jamia Al Islamia Patiya as head of the Translation and Composition Department. He later took on teaching responsibilities for advanced texts such as Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunan Abi Dawud, classical philosophy, and Islamic scholastic theology (Ilm al-Kalam).[16] Until the end of his life, he held the position of Sheikh al-Hadith at the institution.[17] Alongside his teaching role at Patiya, he also served for nearly four years as Secretary-General of Anjuman-e-Ittihadul Madaris Bangladesh and held the position of Chief Academic Director (Nazim-e-Ta’limat) of Patiya from 1395 to 1401 AH.[16] Among his students was Muhammad Yunus.[18]

Political life

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Ahmad addressing a gathering of Islami Chhatra Samaj at Palton Maidan in 1970

Ahmad began his political involvement around 1940 as a worker of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind under the leadership of Hussain Ahmad Madani, marking the beginning of his active political career.[19] After the establishment of Pakistan in 1947, he met Madani at a mosque on Canning Street in Kolkata, accompanied by Ashraf Ali Dharnondoli, to discuss the future of Islamic activism in the changed political landscape.[19] Madani advised them to continue the movement for establishing Islamic governance in Pakistan.[19] In 1950, Ahmad attended a Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam conference held at Machihata in Brahmanbaria as an observer.[20] He formally joined the organization in 1952 and participated as a councillor in a three-day East Pakistan Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam conference held in Hozrat Nagar, Kishoreganj, from March 11 to 13.[20] At this event, the organization announced its separation from the Muslim League and formed an independent identity through the establishment of its political wing, the Nizam-e-Islam Party, which later joined the United Front.[20] In the 1954 elections, Ahmad was elected a member of the Provincial Assembly of East Pakistan from the Cox’s Bazar–Maheshkhali–Kutubdia constituency under the United Front nomination.[21] In 1955, the Nizam-e-Islam Party formed a new central committee, and Ahmad was elected General Secretary, a position he held until 1958.[20][22]

Later, after Chaudhri Muhammad Ali joined the party, changes took place in the central leadership. From April 28 to 30, 1958, a party council session was held in Lahore, attended by 25 delegates from East Pakistan. The session took place at Advocate Nasim Ahsan’s residence in Gulberg, Lahore, where Muhammad Ali was elected President of the All Pakistan Nizam-e-Islam Party.[23] After the imposition of martial law later that year, Ahmad began working underground to reorganize the party.[23] In 1962, with a partial return to political activity, a council session was held on November 8 at Curzon Hall, Dhaka, where Muhammad Ali was elected Central President and Ahmad became Vice President.[23] In 1965, at another session at the District Board Hall in Dhaka, Ahmad was elected Provincial President while Ashraf Ali Dharnondoli became Provincial General Secretary.[23] In September 1969, Muhammad Ali and Farid Ahmad represented the Nizam-e-Islam Party at a roundtable conference in Lahore called by Ayub Khan. After Sheikh Mujibur Rahman withdrew from the talks, right-wing leaders decided to form a unified party. Without the consent of the party councillors, Muhammad Ali, Farid Ahmad, and Syed Moslehuddin joined the Pakistan Democratic Party (PDP) and declared the Nizam-e-Islam Party dissolved. Siddique Ahmad and many others disagreed. A full council meeting was held on October 19–20, 1969, at Zahura Mansion in Dhaka, where it was decided not to dissolve the party. It was renamed “Markazi Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Nizam-e-Islam Party,” and Ahmad was elected Central Secretary General.[24]

After the formation of the PDP, Ahmad played a key role in reviving the Nizam-e-Islam Party, ensuring it retained its independent existence.[24] He also served for a time as a union member in his native Baraitali. In the 1970 general elections, he contested for a seat in the National Assembly from Chittagong-14 (Satkania–Chakaria) as a candidate of the Nizam-e-Islam Party but was not elected.[25] After the independence of Bangladesh, President Ziaur Rahman invited him to join the cabinet, but Ahmad declined, saying that with limited power he would merely be a puppet and would not be able to establish the law of Allah.[26] He had similarly declined an invitation in 1971 to join Governor Abdul Motaleb Malik’s cabinet.[27] In 1972, he was arrested from his home in Baraitali by local Mukti Bahini commander Salauddin Mahmud and was detained for 22 months without trial before being released due to lack of evidence.[28][29] During his imprisonment, without access to any reference books, he wrote an eight-volume series titled Shan-e-Nubuwwat, which discussed various aspects of the Prophet Muhammad’s life.[30] After independence, when Islamic political activity was banned, he continued his religious outreach through sermons, tafsir gatherings, and Seerat-un-Nabi conferences.[25] Once the ban was lifted, he brought together eight Islamic parties—including Nizam-e-Islam, Jamaat-e-Islami, PDP, and Khilafat-e-Rabbani—to form the Islamic Democratic League (IDL), and was elected its central chairman.[31] After the IDL dissolved, he revived the Nizam-e-Islam Party in 1981 and remained its president and patron until his death.[25]

Death

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Gravesite of Siddique Ahmad

In November 1983, Ahmad suffered a sudden stroke due to complications from diabetes, which left him paralyzed.[32] After several years of illness, he died on 19 May 1987.[33] His funeral prayer was held on 20 May at Shantir Bazar in Boraitoli, led by his second son, Sohaib Nomani. He was buried beside the southern side of the mosque at Fayzul Uloom Madrasa.[34] Ahmad was married twice; his wives were Chemon Ara Begum and Arefa Begum. He had seven sons and five daughters.[35]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Ahmadullah, Hafez; Qadir, Ridwanul (2018). Mashayekh-e Chatgam (in Bengali). Bangla Bazar: Ahmod Prokashon. p. 55. ISBN 978-984-92106-4-1.
  2. ^ Uddin, Md. Nesar (2008). Khatib-e-Azam Maulana Siddique Ahmad (R.) and His Revolutionary Thought (MPhil thesis) (in Bengali). Bangladesh: University of Dhaka. p. 14.
  3. ^ Ashraf, Jobair Ahmad (2021). Smoronio Monishi (in Bengali). Bangla Bazar: Cetana Publications. p. 40. ISBN 978-984-34-8904-3.
  4. ^ Uddin 2008, p. 14.
  5. ^ Qasmi, Mazharul Islam Osman (2015). Student life of 100 famous Ulama-Mashaykhs (in Bengali) (3rd ed.). Bangla Bazar: Bud Comprint and Publications. p. 159. ISBN 98483916605
  6. ^ Uddin 2008, p. 15.
  7. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 56.
  8. ^ Azami, Noor Muhammad (2008). Theoretical Framework and Historical Development of Hadith (in Bengali). Bangladesh: Emdadia Library. p. 256. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022.
  9. ^ Qadir, Masudul (2006). Patiya's Ten Legends (PDF) (in Bengali). Andarkilla: Al Manar Library. p. 92.
  10. ^ Hossain, A F M Khalid (1989). Khatib-e-Azam Maulana Siddique Ahmad: The source of an era of revolution (in Bengali). Bangladesh: Cintadhara Prakasana. p. 13.
  11. ^ Islam, Amirul (2012). Golden Bengal, a Mine of Diamonds: Lives of 45 Sufi Saints (in Bengali). Bangla Bazar: Kohinoor Library. p. 129. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  12. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 61.
  13. ^ a b c Uddin 2008, p. 20.
  14. ^ Jahangir, Salahuddin (2017). Renowned Ulama of Bengal (in Bengali). Vol. 2. Dhaka: Maktabaatul Azhar. p. 19.
  15. ^ Azad, Raihan (21 May 2015). "Remembering: Maulana Siddique Ahmad". Daily Naya Diganta. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020.
  16. ^ a b Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 60.
  17. ^ Ahsan, Sayed (2006). Origin and development of Hadith practice in Bangladesh (in Bengali). Segunbagicha, Dhaka: Adorn Publications. p. 185. ISBN 9842000184. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  18. ^ Hossain, AFM Khalid (2022). Extinguished lamp (in Bengali). Chittagong: Akabir Studies and Publishing House. p. 198. ISBN 9789849591405.
  19. ^ a b c Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 62.
  20. ^ a b c d Uddin 2008, p. 30.
  21. ^ Rahman, Md. Monibur (2019). Bengali Alem Member of Parliament (1937–2018) (in Bengali). Dhaka: Ekattor Publication. p. 115. ISBN 9789848094372.
  22. ^ Islam, SM Aminul (2016). Islam, Samar (ed.). Hundreds of Bengali Ulama: A Biographical Compendium (in Bengali) (2nd ed.). Bangla Bazar: BhoiGhor. p. 235. ISBN 9847016800481
  23. ^ a b c d Uddin 2008, p. 31.
  24. ^ a b Uddin 2008, p. 32.
  25. ^ a b c Uddin 2008, p. 33.
  26. ^ Harun, Mizan (2018). Rijal sanau al-tarikh wa khadamu al-Islam wa al-ilm fi Bangladesh lil-Shamilah (in Arabic). Dhaka: Darul Bayan. p. 283. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2025.
  27. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 64.
  28. ^ Nijampuri, Ashraf Ali (2013). The Hundred (100 Great Scholars from Bangladesh) (in Bengali). Hathazari, Chittagong: Salman Prokashoni. p. 174.
  29. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 67–68.
  30. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 68.
  31. ^ Rahman, Muhammad Habibur (2009). We are their successors (in Bengali) (2nd ed.). Mirpur, Dhaka: Al-Kawsar Publication. p. 269. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  32. ^ Uddin 2008, p. 163.
  33. ^ Uddin 2008, p. 164.
  34. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 79.
  35. ^ Ahmadullah & Qadir 2018, p. 80.
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