Last year, when a prominent Muslim educationist and scholar accepted an invitation from the Ahmadis in Qadian, the ‘Lion of Islam’ declared that she had ‘ruined her faith and injured the hearts of all Muslims’, and threatened to have fatwas issued against her if she didn’t give a satisfactory explanation ‘within three days’. He regards them as not only outside the pale of Islam but also tools of a vast ‘Jewish’ conspiracy against Islam and India. The ‘Lion of Islam’ is always ready to wave his sword and threaten the Ahmadi Muslims of India. The most irascible of the four has to be the savant of Ludhiana. During the recent elections he threw his weight around in Bengal politics, and consequently may have lost some of his clout.Ĭourtesy: Facebook page of the Ludhiana Jama Masjid Always ready to ‘ deal’ with anyone who dares to question his actions within the precincts of his mosque, he is also a gourmand and believes that for Muslims to invite people like him to a feast or festive gathering is the same as extending an invitation to the Prophet. From what little of him I have seen or read on the Internet, I get the impression that his range of words and ideas is rather limited. My least favourite is the savant of Kolkota. Mera Bharat is indeed mahaan.įrom the Magazine India's Best B-Schools 2022: Top Private MBA Institutions In India India's Best B-Schools 2022: Top Public MBA Institutions In India The Great Indian Dream: How Youngsters Are Creating Wealth With Offbeat Ideas Indian Richie Rich: A Billion Bucks Worth Of Brash And Brilliant Minds Diary | 'Udham Singh' Is An Emotional Journey: Vicky Kaushal So here we are with four ‘Shahi Imams’ in one republic, a secular one at that. Much to my shame I don’t know what Shah bestowed upon his ancestor that title, though I hope it was not Ahmad Shah Abdali. Since last year, his followers have also started calling him Sher-i-Islam (The Lion of Islam), for, like some Sikh leaders, he likes to carry a sword when making appearances in public. Rahman is also the President of a political party, the Ahrar, long defunct everywhere except in Ludhiana. (Does his Punjab also include the areas that are now parts of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, not to mention Pakistan? I can’t say.) Mr. Mr Habibur Rahman, however, is unique he claims to be the ‘Shahi Imam’ of not just Ludhiana but all of Punjab. No, dear reader, our fourth ‘Shahi Imam’ resides in Ludhiana, Punjab, that city humming with productive energy of every kind. Even the Imam of the major Shi’ah mosque in the city does not claim that title. Barkati can at best call himself a ‘Sultani Imam’, but, obviously, he wouldn’t get as much mileage out of it.īy now you might be expecting to visit Lucknow to meet the fourth ‘Shahi Imam’-after all the later Nawabs of Oudh had themselves anointed as ‘ Badshah’ by the British. Since Tipu never designated himself a Shah, Mr. Mr Nurur Rahman Barkati claims his title by virtue of leading prayers in a mosque that was built by Tipu Sultan’s sons during their stay in the city as virtual prisoners. The city, in its previous incarnation as Calcutta, had indeed been British India’s capital for decades, but neither George III nor Queen Victoria built an imperial mosque there. It was built by Fatehpuri Begum, one of Shahjahan’s many wives, and so its Imam is technically only a ‘Begumi Imam’. The first mosque was indeed built by a Shah, but the second was not.
The nation’s capital, not surprisingly, is blessed with two: Mr Syed Ahmad Bukhari at the Jama Masjid, and Dr Mufti Mukarram Ahmad at the Fatehpuri Mosque. Someone more diligent might yet find a few more. Compared to the Saudi Kingdom and the Islamic Republic, India stands tall-in fact taller than most of us think, for it has four ‘Shahi Imams’. It too has only Imams, and they, regardless of any other delusion of grandeur that some could have entertained, have remained content with the simpler title. Pakistan has had no king so far, but it has the great Badshahi Mosque in Lahore. Even the men who lead the prayers at the Ka’ba in Mecca are simply known as Imams. Saudi Arabia is a kingdom, and has had several Kings during the last 100 years, but it does not have a ‘Shahi Imam’, nor had one before.
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