Qazi Hussain Ahmad

Qazi Hussain Ahmad قاضی حسین احمد
Emir of Jamaat-e-Islami
In office 7 October 1987 – 29 March 2009[1]
Preceded by	Tufail Muhammad
Succeeded by	Munawwar Hassan
President of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
In office 10 October 2002 – 18 February 2008
Preceded by	Shah Ahmad Noorani
Succeeded by	Alliance collapse
Personal details
Born	(1938-01-12)12 January 1938 Now Shera, Now Shera District, North-West Frontier, British Indian Empire
Died	6 January 2013(2013-01-06) (aged 74)[2] Islamabad
Nationality	British Subject (1938–1947)  Pakistan (1947–present)
Political party	Jamaat-e-Islami
Alma mater	University of Peshawar (BSc, MSc)
Occupation	Foreign policy commentator, religious leader
Profession	Professor, religious leader
Religion	Islam

Qazi Hussain Ahmad (Urdu: قاضی حسین احمد 12 January 1938^[3] – 6 January 2013)^[2] was an Islamic scholar, clergyman, democracy activist, and former Emir of Jamaat-e-Islami, the socially conservative Islamist political party in Pakistan.

He was a strong critic of the counter-terrorism policy of the United States, and was widely known for his opposition to the United States' participation in the war against the Taliban in neighbouring Afghanistan.^[4]

Early life

Background

Qazi was born in 1938 in the house of Maulana Qazi Muhammad Abdul Rab at Ziarat Kaka Sahib, Nowshera District, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Qazi Sahib is descendant of Seljoki Sheikh Hazrat Sheikh Akhund Adyan seljuki Baba/Akhuna din Baba ( شیخ اخوند ادین بابا /اخوندین بابا/سلجوقی), who was a teacher of Hazrat kaka sahib and contemporary of Khushal Khan Khattak. A teacher by profession, Maulana was appointed as the President of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Qazi Hussain Ahmed was the youngest among his ten siblings.

After having completed early education at home, Qazi Hussain Ahmad was admitted to Islamia College, Peshawar and got his Master of Science (MSc) degree in Geography from Peshawar University. He served as lecturer at Saidu Medical College Swat for three years, teaching at the graduate level. He left university after three years. After that he started his own business. He was elected as Vice-President, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (Provincial) Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Living in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa gave him some familiarity with political affairs in neighboring Afghanistan.

Personal life

Qazi Hussain Ahmed had two sons (Asif Luqman Qazi and Anas Farhan Qazi) and two daughters. His wife and children all are Jamaat-e-Islami activists. He spoke Urdu, English, Arabic, and Persian, in addition to his native tongue, Pashto. He was a great admirer of the poet Allama Muhammad Iqbal and employed quotes from both Iqbal's Urdu and Persian poetry in his speeches and conversations.

Political career

His affiliation with the Islamic Movement started in his school days when he joined Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, Pakistan. He became member of Jamaat-e-Islami in 1970 and was elected to the office of President of its Peshawar branch. He served Jamaat-e-Islami as Secretary and then Ameer of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. He was raised to the office of Secretary General, Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan in 1978 and after elected as Ameer (Chief) of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan in 1987, continued to serve in that capacity, getting re-elected four more times (1992, 1994, 1999, 2003). In 2008, he declined to be elected once more and the members of his Party (Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan) elected Syed Munawwar Hassan as the new President of the Party.

He was Secretary General of the Muttahida Shariat Mahaz (1986). He was also the Central President of seized Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal.

Politics

Qazi Hussain Ahmad was first elected as a member of the Senate of Pakistan in 1986 for a term of six years. Within Pakistan, he was a patron of organisations such as Pasban and founder of Shabab e Milli. He was Secretary General of the Muttahida Shariat Mahaz (1986).

Qazi Hussain Ahmad was first elected as member of the Senate of Pakistan in 1986 for a term of six years. He was re-elected as such in March 1992, but he resigned as a Senator in 1996 as a protest against corruption. He was elected as a Member of National Assembly in 2002 general elections from his native town. He served as the Parliamentary Leader of the Opposition Party Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal ( Qazi Hussain Ahmad traveled abroad widely to represent Jamaat at the international forums, lead goodwill missions, and in a personal capacity to mediate in issues concerning Muslims, such as the Iran-Iraq and the Persian Gulf War, the Balkan (Bosnia) crisis and the post-Soviet power struggle in Afghanistan. Even before the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, Qazi Hussain Ahmed was in close contact with Afghan mujahideen and met with top Afghan leaders. He helped build support in Pakistan for the movement and introduce the Afghan jihad to the outside world.

In 1997 Qazi launched a nationwide campaign to expand the party membership which brought in 4.5 million new members to the Jamaat. He was a staunch supporter of the Kashmiri insurgency against India and the initiator of the Kashmir Solidarity Day.^[5] MMA).

Successful Long March

On 20 July 1996, Qazi Hussain Ahmed announced to start protests against government alleging corruption. Qazi Hussain resigned from senate on 27 September and announced to start long march against Benazir government. Protest started on 27 October 1996 by Jamaat e Islami and opposition parties. On 4 November 1996, Bhutto's government was dismissed by President Leghari primarily because of corruption.

He wrote articles for national newspapers on a regular basis.

Death

Sheikh Akhund Adyan seljoki (2)

Qazi Hussain Ahmad died on 6 January 2013, at 01:40am Pakistan Standard Time at one of his son's house in Islamabad, Pakistan. The cause of his death is unknown.^[2][6][7]

See also

• Abdul Ghafoor Ahmed
• Nowshera District
• Akora Khattak

References