Muhammadullah Hafezzi

{{Infobox religious biography

|honorific_prefix = Mawlana

|name = Muhammadullah Hafezzi

|image = Muhammadullah Hafezzi.jpeg

|caption = Photograph taken by Anwar Hossain in 1981

|title =

|birth_name = Muhammadullah

|birth_date = 1895

|birth_place = Ludhua, Raipur, Lakshmipur, Bengal, British India

|death_date = {{date of death and age|1987|5|6|1895|df=y}}

|death_place = Bangladesh

|death_cause =

|resting_place = Kamrangirchar, Dhaka, Bangladesh

|other_names =

|citizenship = British Indian (1895-1947)
Pakistani (1947-1971)
Bangladeshi (1971-1987)

|religion = Sunni Islam

|era =

|region =

|occupation = Politician

|denomination =

|jurisprudence = Hanafi

|creed =

|movement = Deobandi

|main_interests = Islamic Politics, Sufism

|notable_ideas =

|notable_works =

|alma_mater =

|Sufi_order = Chishti (Sabiri)

|students = Abdul Jabbar Jahanabadi, Azizul Haque

|awards =

|influences = Ashraf Ali Thanwi

|disciples=Hafez Ahmadullah

|influenced = Abdul Hai Paharpuri
Waliur Rahman
Abu Taher Misbah

|website =

|signature =

}}

Muhammadullah Hafezzi (1895 – 6 May 1987), commonly known as Hafezzī Huzūr, was a Bangladeshi politician, Islamic leader and founder of the Bangladesh Khilafat Andolan.{{cite journal|last=Islam|first=Syed Serajul|date=Feb 1987|title=Bangladesh in 1986: Entering a New Phase|journal=Asian Survey|volume=27|issue=2|page=168|doi=10.2307/2644611|jstor=2644611 }}{{cite journal|last=Ahamed|first=Emajuddin|author2=D. R. J. A. Nazneen|date=Aug 1990|title=Islam in Bangladesh: Revivalism or Power Politics?|journal=Asian Survey|volume=30|issue=8|page=802|doi=10.2307/2644499|jstor=2644499 }} He was the first religious figure to stand for the highest state office in Bangladesh.{{cite book|title=Islam and Democracy in South Asia: The Case of Bangladesh|date=20 March 2020|publisher=Springer Publishing|author1=Islam, Muhammad Nazrul|author2=Islam, Muhammad Saidul|page=273|chapter=Islam, Islamism, and democracy in Bangladesh}}

Early life and education

Muhammadullah was born in the year 1895, in the village of Ludhua in the Raipur Thana of Lakshmipur, then under the Noakhali district of the Bengal Presidency. His father, Idris Mianji, was a munshi. Muhammadullah's grandfather, Akramuddin Mianji, was a disciple of Ghazi Imamuddin Bengali, a khalifa (spiritual successor) of Syed Ahmad Shaheed in Bengal.{{cite book|language=ar|title=كتاب البدور المضية في تراجم الحنفية|author=al-Kumillai, Muhammad Hifzur Rahman|publisher=Dar al-Salih|location=Cairo, Egypt|year=2018|chapter=الشيخ الفاضل محمد الله بن إدريس النواخالوي البنغلاديشي المعروف بحافظجي حضور|trans-chapter=The honourable Shaykh, Muhammadullah, son of Idrees, al-Nawakhalawi, of Bangladesh, famed as Hafezzi Huzur}}

Muhammadullah studied at Fatehpur Primary School before proceeding to Chandraganj Madrasa where he studied for a year. He then studied for a year at Nawab Faizunnesa's madrasa in Laksam, and then enrolling at the Khilbais Madrasa in Lakshmipur. In Panipat, first under Qari Abdus Salam in 1913 and then under Qari Akhlaq Husayn in 1915, he completed his hifz. Muhammadullah completed the seven qira'at under Qari Abdul Alim ibn Qari Abdur Rahman Panipati.{{cite book |script-title=bn:হাদীছের তত্ত্ব ও ইতিহাস|page=31|language=bn |publisher=Emdadia Library |chapter=2.2 বঙ্গে এলমে হাদীছ |author=Azmi, Nur Muhammad|trans-title=Information and history of Hadith |trans-chapter=2.2 Knowledge of Hadith in Bengal}} He then moved on to study at Mazahir Uloom in Saharanpur from 1915 to 1922, where he completed Kutub al-Sittah. He gained a high-class certificate from Darul Uloom Deoband in 1923.{{cite news|url=https://dailysangram.com/post/122357-%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%93%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%9C%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%80%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%95-%E0%A6%86%E0%A6%A7%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%95-%E0%A6%9C%E0%A6%97%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%89%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%B2-%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%95%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B7%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0--%E0%A6%B9%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%A4-%E0%A6%B9%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AB%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%80-%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%B9|script-title=bn:তওবার রাজনীতির প্রবর্তক আধ্যাত্মিক জগতের উজ্জ্বল নক্ষত্র হযরত হাফেজ্জী হুজুর রহ|work=The Daily Sangram|date=18 July 2013|language=bn}}

Career

His entrance to politics started with the founding of the Nizam-e-Islam Party in 1952. In 1978, the President of Bangladesh Ziaur Rahman removed the ban on religion-based political parties in the country. In response, Hafezzi Huzur sent the President an open letter, requesting him to base the country's administration upon Islamic ideals.হাফেজ্জী হুজুর স্মারক গ্রন্থ (in Bengali), Hafezzi Huzur Parishad 2005, 933 Following the assassination of Ziaur Rahman, Hafezzi Huzur stood up as an independent presidential candidate in the 1981 elections. He finished third, gaining 1.79% of the total votes.

Hafezzi Huzur founded his own political party known as Bangladesh Khilafat Andolan in November 1981.{{cite news|script-title=bn:জীবদ্দশায় ছেলেরা, এখন নাতিরা পদ নিয়ে দ্বন্দ্বে|language=bn|url=https://www.prothomalo.com/politics/%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%80%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A6%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC-%E0%A6%9B%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B2%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%8F%E0%A6%96%E0%A6%A8-%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%AA%E0%A6%A6-%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%AC%E0%A7%87|work=Prothom Alo|author=Jahid, Salim|date=28 November 2014}} His political career included travelling and meeting dignitaries in Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq.{{cite book |last=Kabir |first=Humayun |editor1-last=Mattson |editor1-first=Ingrid |editor2-last=Tahir |editor2-first=Nawaz |editor3-last=Nesbitt-Larking |editor3-first=Paul |year=2015 |chapter=Beyond Jamaat-e-Islami: The Political Rise of the Deobandis, the Mystic Leaders, and Islamism in Bangladesh |title=Religion and Representation: Islam and Democracy |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |page=63 |isbn=978-1-4438-7059-7}}

In response to military rule, Hafezzi Huzur formed a committee, the Sammilita Sangram Parishad (Combined Action Committee), consisting of 11 Islamic parties.{{cite book|title=Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Bangladesh|author1=Riaz, Ali|author2=Rahman, Mohammad Sajjadur|date=29 January 2016|publisher=Taylor & Francis}} He stood for the 1986 elections, in which he finished second with 5.69% of total votes.{{cite book|page=134|title=Transfer and transformation: political institutions in the New Commonwealth. Essays in honour of W. H. Morris-Jones|year=1983|editor1=Lyon, Peter|editor2=Manor, James|publisher=Leicester University Press}}

Views

Hafezzi Huzur expressed opposition to the 1982 coup d'état, labelling Hussain Muhammad Ershad's military rule as un-Islamic. In his Shotorkobaṇī (words of warning) booklet, he referred to the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami as a Mawdudi fitnah that spreads misguidance.{{cite book |last=Kabir |first=Humayun |editor1-last=Mattson |editor1-first=Ingrid |editor2-last=Tahir |editor2-first=Nawaz |editor3-last=Nesbitt-Larking |editor3-first=Paul |year=2015 |chapter=Beyond Jamaat-e-Islami: The Political Rise of the Deobandis, the Mystic Leaders, and Islamism in Bangladesh |title=Religion and Representation: Islam and Democracy |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |page=64 |isbn=978-1-4438-7059-7}}

Death and legacy

Muhammadullah died on 7 May 1987. His janazah was performed at the National Eidgah in Dhaka.{{cite news|url=https://www.dailyinqilab.com/article/83662/%E0%A6%B9%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%A4-%E0%A6%B9%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%AB%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%80-%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%9C%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%B9|script-title=bn:হযরত হাফেজ্জী হুজুর রহ|language=bn|work=Daily Inqilab|date=14 June 2017|author=Khan, Muhammad Zafarullah}}

In his honour, the erstwhile Mayor of Dhaka Mohammad Hanif renamed Phoenix Road (near Gulistan) to Mawlana Muhammadullah Hafezzi Huzur Road. This change was undone on 21 February 2017 by the Dhaka South City Corporation.{{cite news|script-title=bn:সড়ক থেকে হাফেজ্জী হুজুরের নাম মুছে দেওয়ার পরিণাম শুভ হবে না|language=bn|url=http://www.banglatribune.com/national/news/183677|work=Bangla Tribune|date=24 February 2017}} This action was a part of a campaign to rename places named after anti-independence individuals, suggested by the Bangladesh High Court.{{cite news|url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/politics/2017/02/12/hefazats-demand-irrational|website=Dhaka Tribune|title=Hefazat's demand irrational|author=Mahadi Al Hasnat|date=12 February 2017}} Eyewitness accounts on the other hand, suggest that Hafezzi Huzur expressed support for the Bangladesh Liberation War referring to the Pakistan Army as oppressors.{{cite news|url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2017/04/22/qawmi-certificate-greek-sculpture-and-pohela-boishakh|website=Dhaka Tribune|title=Qawmi certificate, Greek sculpture and Pohela Boishakh|author=Alamgir, Anis|date=22 April 2017}} Mawlana Imdadul Haq Araihazari also states that his involvement as a Bengali freedom fighter is due to Hafezzi Huzur's expression of support.{{cite book|script-title=bn:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ ও উলামায়ে কেরাম|trans-title=Bangladesh's independence war and the ulama|author=Mabnu, Syed|language=bn}}{{cite news|website=Kaler Kantho|url=https://www.kalerkantho.com/print-edition/dhormo/2014/03/14/61556|author=Zahir ibne Muslim|script-title=bn:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতাযুদ্ধে আলেমসমাজের ভূমিকা|language=bn|date=14 March 2014}}