By Pervez Bari
BHOPAL – A two-day national seminar was organized to acknowledge the intellectual prowess of Allama Qazi Syed Abid Ali Wajdi-ul-Hussaini, a towering personality known across the Islamic world.
It was organized at the initiative of Adv. Haji Mohammad Haroon.
He was Bhopal Shahar Qazi for nearly three decades from 1961 to 1990 when he left for his heavenly abode. He authored many books and was also a Freedom Fighter as he had actively taken part in the Quit India Movement.
Qazi Syed Abid Ali Wajdi-ul-Hussaini, was a symbol of communal harmony and ensured that there was never any communal conflict. People of other faiths stood in awe with folded hands whenever they saw him passing by. He led a simple life and had close relations with religious personalities of other faiths.
Adv. Haji Haroon, president Maulana Barkatullah Bhopali Education Society, and his team organised the national seminar on life and works of late Qazi Maulana Syed Abid Ali Wajdi-ul-Hussaini the other day here at Barkatullah Public School. The seminar was held under the auspices of Maulana Barkatullah Bhopali Education Society.
A versatile personality
Dr. Mohammad Nauman Khan, a retired Professor of NCERT, in his keynote address said that Allama Wajdi-ul-Hussaini was considered to be one of the great and talented personalities of his time. He was an institution in his own right due to his versatile and all-round personality.
Dr. Nauman said he was not only a religious scholar, Mufti, Qazi, Muhaddith, commentator, thinker, researcher, historian, eloquent speaker, qualified translator, teacher and intellectual, but was also a Qadir-ul-Kalam poet and writer. He had equal proficiency in different languages, familiarity with different academic, literary and religious studies, national unity, and adherence to Islamic and Indian common culture. His wide observation and study made his personality a source of knowledge and awareness.
Allama Wajdi-ul-Hussaini’s maternal grandfather, Hakeem Hafiz Abdul Hafeez Khan, wanted to make him Hakeem (a Unani medical practitioner) like him, but this noble soul preferred to become a religious scholar and chose the profession of teaching. Along with all his virtues, his righteousness was that he was a pioneer of national unity. He had good relations with followers of every religion, Dr. Nauman revealed.
The inaugural session of the seminar was presided over by present Bhopal Shahar Qazi Maulana Syed Mushtaq Ali Nadvi. While Dr. Sheikh Aqeel Ahmed, Director of National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language (NCPUL), New Delhi, participated as chief guest.
Adv. Haji Haroon,welcomed the guests. In his welcome speech he said that Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini resides in the heart of every Bhopalite. The aim of this seminar is that the new generation can also get to know about this great personality.
On this occasion Adv. Haroon announced that a program will be organized every year in the memory of Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini and two awards will be presented in his name every year. We will also try to publish his unpublished works. In this regard, a committee will be formed to carry out this work, he added.
While presiding over the inaugural function, Bhopal Shahar Qazi Maulana Syed Mushtaq Ali Nadvi said that those who are associated with institutions, they try to benefit from the name of these institutions, but Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini was such a character that institutions benefitted by his presence and his associations with it.
NCPUL to publish unpublished works
While NCPUL Director Dr. Sheikh Aqueel Ahmad observed that Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini had the characteristic of doing comparative studies. He said languages have played an important role in the development of composite culture of India.
Responding to Haji Haroon’s announcement, Dr. Sheikh Aqueel declared that NCPUL would publish all the unpublished works of the great saint if its manuscripts are handed over to it.
Was known across Islamic world
Bhopal Shahar Mufti Abdul Kalam Qasmi said that Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini was known across the Islamic world and the library of international repute Dar-ul-Uloom in Deoband is named after him, which is a source of pride for people of Bhopal. Padamshri Hakeem Zillur Rahman from Aligarh said that Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini was not just known for his simple life, humility and knowledge but had excellent relations with people from all sections of the society.
Maulana Mohammad Hassan Khan, Rector of Dar-Uloom, Taj-ul-Masajid, Bhopal said that it was the responsibility of all of us to hold a program on Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini which was long overdue, but Haji Haroon and his team did it. We congratulate them.
Bonhomie with religious leaders of other faiths
A photograph of late Qazi Syed Abid Wajdi-ul-Hussaini with the late Mahant of Bhopal’s Gufa Mandir Chandra Das at the venue of the seminar was a centre of attraction which depicted the former’s association with religious leaders of other faiths.
On this occasion, representatives of different religions and ideologies expressed their views while paying rich tributes to Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini. Among them were Adv. Syed Sajid Ali, Mufti Muhammad Saeed Akhtar, Architect S. M. Hussain, Dr. Tariq Zafar, Dr. Razia Hamid, Dr. Bilqis Jahan, Giyani Dilip Singh, Shailender Shelley, Gurucharan Singh, G. Arora, Rajendra Kothari, Pandit Mahendra Sharma and Fr. Dilip etc.
Over a dozen papers were presented in the seminar on the life and works of Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini which included Maulana Umair Siddiq Nadvi from Azamgarh, Dr. Khalid Mahmood from Delhi, Ms. Razia Tanveer, the daughter of Qazi Wajdi Sahib, Arif Aziz, Iqbal Masood, Dr. Arif Juned Nadvi, Dr. Azam Mohammad Khan, Dr. Saifi Sironji, Dr. Marzia Arif, Badr Wasti etc. while Prof. Iqtadar Ahmad paid poetic tributes to the great soul.
Adv. Haji Haroon and his team were showered with accolades from one all for organising such a graceful programme on the life and works of Qazi Wajdi-ul-Hussaini wherein family members of the great scholar were also present.
Meanwhile, books of eminent Urdu journalist Arif Aziz, Maulana Naimatullah Nadvi, Khalid Muhammad Khan, and Nafisa Sultana etc. were also released during the opening ceremony of the seminar.
Adv. Mohammad Kaleem Haroon, the joint secretary of the Society, compeered the opening ceremony. Dr. Syed Mehrul Hasan proposed a vote of thanks.
Haji Mohammad Imran Haroon, Haji Hanif Ayyubi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Salman, Maulana Yasir, Mohammad Ahmed, Mohammad Zubair did their bit to make the seminar successful. A large number of men and women, lovers of knowledge and literature from Bhopal and outside participated in the seminar.
