Deobandi politics

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Deobandi politics
Ideologies
Deobandi jihadism, Deobandi composite nationalism
Parties
Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, Majlis-e Ahrar-e Islam, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Taliban, Muslim Union Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (S), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Bangladesh, Nizam-e-Islam Party, Bangladesh Khilafat Andolan, Islami Andolan Bangladesh
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Deobandi movement

Deobandi politics refers to a political phenomenon that originated during the 1857 Indian Rebellion in British India. Its primary objective is to establish Sharia law in various parts of the world, with a particular focus on South Asia. The movement is associated with the promotion of a conservative and orthodox interpretation of Islam that emphasizes strict adherence to Islamic law and tradition, and frequently concentrates on moral and social issues, such as the promotion of Islamic education and the defense of traditional values. The Deobandi movement has not adopted a singular model to achieve its objectives and has utilized both militant struggle and mainstream politics. Deobandi politics has undergone three waves of armed struggle, which can be identified as Deobandi jihadism. The first two waves failed, but the third wave resulted in the establishment of an Islamic state named the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan. During the second wave of armed struggle, Mahmud Hasan Deobandi attempted to defeat the British in India with the assistance of the Ottoman Empire. However, his attempt failed, and he was arrested by the British. After his release, he and his disciples engaged in mainstream politics and were associated with the creation of political parties and social movements, such as the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind. During the Indian freedom struggle, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind evolved and embraced composite nationalism, rejecting the partition of India as the better future for Indian Muslims. Nevertheless, other Deobandis refused to accept this and developed Muslim nationalism against composite nationalism, establishing the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam to support the creation of Pakistan.

Contents

Background

In 1600, Elizabeth I of England granted a charter to the East India Company, giving it the privilege to conduct trade in the Orient. The company later secured the right to trade in Surat from the Mughal administration in 1612. In 1615, with the approval of Mughal Emperor Jahangir, the company established trading posts on both the western and eastern coasts of South India. [1] Over time, the British East India Company steadily expanded its trade and political influence throughout India. The company's rule over India began in 1757 when it defeated the Siraj ud-Daulah in the Battle of Plassey. [2]

By the 12th century, the Indian subcontinent had been under the control of Muslim rulers. However, the power of the Muslims began to wane, and the British eventually took over as a result of their comprehensive efforts to undermine the economic, social, and political power of Muslim society. Shah Waliullah Dehlawi initiated efforts to revive the Muslim community in India, which had been in decline. [3] Following his death, his son, Shah Abdul Aziz Dehlavi, carried on his work, declaring jihad as a duty to save India and issuing a fatwa to that effect. [4] To lead this movement, he selected Syed Ahmad Barelvi, who was later killed in the Battle of Balakot in 1831 along with his disciple Shah Ismail Dehlvi. [5] Despite these losses, the movement of Muslims in India continued to persist.

In 1857, it took the form of the Indian Rebellion. During this time, an independent Islamic territory was briefly established in the Thana Bhawan area of the Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh. The temporary government that was formed in this area was led by Chief Justice Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, Commander in Chief Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, and Amir al-Mu'minin Imdadullah Muhajir Makki. [6] [7] On September 14, 1857, the Battle of Shamli was fought against the British under the leadership of this temporary government, in which Hafiz Muhammad Zamin was martyred. The leadership subsequently went into hiding, and the government of the independent Thana Bhawan ultimately fell. Despite the failure of the Indian Rebellion, it marked a turning point in British colonial rule and paved the way for significant changes in the administration of India. The British government responded to the rebellion by announcing the arrest and offering rewards for the capture of Imdadullah Muhajir Makki, Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, and Rashid Ahmad Gangohi. [8] In 1858, the Government of India Act put an end to the East India Company's rule in India and established direct control of the British government over the country. [9] After a long period of hiding, Imdadullah Muhajir Makki was eventually able to emigrate to Mecca in 1859. [10] A few days later, when a general amnesty was declared, Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi and Rashid Ahmad Gangohi were released from hiding and resumed their activities. [11]

In 1857, it was propagated that the British had won the war on behalf of God. In an effort to persuade and encourage the common people to convert to Christianity, they sought to change the educational system. [12] As a result of the struggle for independence, war, and British intrigue, Muslim education and culture were left behind, and religious educational institutions lacked patronage and were destroyed. Non-Islamic culture spread within Muslim society. [13] In this situation, with the goal of creating activism and awareness about Islam and the independence movement against imperialism and colonialism, a group of individuals under the guidance of Imdadullah Muhajir Makki and the leadership of Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi founded Darul Uloom Deoband on May 30, 1866. The institution was established under a pomegranate tree in the courtyard of the Chatta Mosque in the Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, India. The founding members included those who had participated in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. [13]

Ideology

Deobandi jihadism

Deobandi jihadism refers to a militant interpretation of Islam that draws upon the teachings of the Deobandi movement. [14]

Deobandi composite nationalism

Deobandi composite nationalism emerged in late 1930s British India, advocating for composite nationalism in the country's struggle for independence while opposing its partition. [15]

Political views of Ashraf Ali Thanwi

Activities

Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind

Majlis-e-Ahrar-ul-Islam

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bibliography of Deobandi Movement</span>

This bibliography of Deobandi Movement is a selected list of generally available scholarly resources related to Deobandi Movement, a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam, adhering to the Hanafi school of law, formed in the late 19th century around the Darul Uloom Deoband in British India, from which the name derives, by Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, Rashid Ahmad Gangohi and several others, after the Indian Rebellion of 1857–58. It is one of the most influential reform movements in modern Islam. Islamic Revival in British India: Deoband, 1860-1900 by Barbara D. Metcalf was the first major monograph specifically devoted to the institutional and intellectual history of this movement. Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi wrote a book named The Tradition of the Scholars of Deoband: Maslak Ulama-i-Deoband, a primary source on the contours of Deobandi ideology. In this work, he tried to project Deoband as an ideology of moderation that is a composite of various knowledge traditions in Islam. This list will include Books and theses written on Deobandi Movement and articles published about this movement in various journals, newspapers, encyclopedias, seminars, websites etc. in APA style. Only bibliography related to Deobandi Movement will be included here, for Darul Uloom Deoband, see Bibliography of Darul Uloom Deoband.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deobandi jihadism</span> History of Deobandi movement

Deobandi jihadism refers to a militant interpretation of Islam that draws upon the teachings of the Deobandi movement, which originated in the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century. The Deobandi movement underwent three waves of armed jihad. The first wave involved the establishment of an Islamic territory centered on Thana Bhawan by the movement's elders during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, before the founding of Darul Uloom Deoband. Imdadullah Muhajir Makki was the Amir al-Mu'minin of this Islamic territory. However, after the British defeated the Deobandi forces in the Battle of Shamli, the territory fell. Following the establishment of Darul Uloom Deoband, Mahmud Hasan Deobandi led the initiation of the second wave. He mobilized an armed resistance against the British through various initiatives, including the formation of the Samratut Tarbiat. When the British uncovered his Silk Letter Movement, they arrested him and held him captive in Malta. After his release, he and his disciples entered into mainstream politics and actively participated in the democratic process. In the late 1979, the Pakistan–Afghan border became the center of the Deobandi jihadist movement's third wave, which was fueled by the Soviet–Afghan War. Under the patronage of President Zia-ul-Haq, its expansion took place through various madrasas such as Darul Uloom Haqqania and Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (S) provided political support for it. Trained militants from the Pakistan–Afghan border participated in the Afghan jihad, and later went on to form various organizations, including the Taliban. The most successful example of Deobandi jihadism is the Taliban, who established Islamic rule in Afghanistan. The head of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (S), Sami-ul-Haq, is referred to as the "father of the Taliban."

References

  1. Sirajul Islam (2012). "East India Company, The". In Sirajul Islam; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN   984-32-0576-6. OCLC   52727562. OL   30677644M . Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  2. Bose, Sugata (2004). Modern South Asia : history, culture, political economy. Ayesha Jalal (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge. p. 76. ISBN   0-415-30786-4. OCLC   52270088.
  3. Shamsuzzaman, Muhammad (2019). ব্রিটিশ বিরোধী আন্দোলনে দেওবন্দ মাদ্রাসার ভূমিকা [Role of Deoband Madrasa in the Anti-British movement] (PhD thesis) (in Bengali). University of Dhaka. p. 97. Archived from the original on 3 June 2022.
  4. Shamsuzzaman 2019, p. 98.
  5. Shamsuzzaman 2019, p. 99–100.
  6. Muhammad Yahya, Abul Fatah (1998). দেওবন্দ আন্দোলন: ইতিহাস ঐতিহ্য অবদান[Deobandi movement: History, Tradition, Contribution] (in Bengali). Dhaka: Al-Amin Research Academy Bangladesh. p. 156.
  7. Muhammad Yahya 1998, p. 156.
  8. Shamsuzzaman 2019, p. 104.
  9. Muhammad Ansar Ali (2012). "India Act, 1858". In Sirajul Islam; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN   984-32-0576-6. OCLC   52727562. OL   30677644M . Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  10. Muhammad Yahya 1998, p. 104.
  11. Shamsuzzaman 2019, p. 157.
  12. Shamsuzzaman 2019, p. 107.
  13. 1 2 Muhammad Yahya 1998, p. 158.
  14. Bameri, Abdolvahed (20 February 2019). "Principles of Obedience to the Religious Ruler In the Political Thought of the Deobandies". Transcendent Policy. 6 (23): 133–152. doi:10.22034/sm.2019.34528. ISSN   2345-2676.
  15. Islam, Maidul (2017). "Umma and the Dilemma of Muslim Belonging in Modern South Asia". St Antony's International Review. 12 (2): 26–43. ISSN   1746-451X. JSTOR   26229172.