By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
Deoband: In a development most likely to set the future course of relationship between Asia’s leading Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband and India’s grand Muslim organization Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH), the executive council of the seminary on 15th June asked top office bearers of the organization, who also hold positions at the seminary, to choose either of the two.
In a pointed way, Darul Uloom asked Maulana Arshad Madani who claims to be the president of JUH, even after the March 6 executive council of the organization approved a no-confidence motion against him, and who is also secretary of education at Darul Uloom, to leave one.
The executive council of Darul Uloom also asked Qari Mohammad Usman who has been nominated president of JUH by its executive council, and who is also deputy rector of the seminary, to choose one of the two. In an unambiguous way, the council told them that they cannot hold two posts at the same time.
Why this sudden change of heart? To know the answer, TwoCircles.net called Maulana Burhanuddin Qasmi of Markazul Maarif in Mumbai. “The ongoing dispute in JUH and the involvement of two leading Darul Uloom office bearers in it were earning the seminary bad reputation,” Maulana Qasmi said. The decision was taken to protect the image of the world-fame seminary, he said. The immediate reason of the decision is the incident of vandalism at the premises of the seminary on the night of 31st May, the day when Darul Uloom rector Maulana Marghubur Rahman attended the massive anti-terrorism conference in New Delhi’s Ramlila Ground. As the conference was organized by JUH leader and MP Maulana Mahmood Madani, the Arshad Madani camp made hue and cry.
Besides the decision of one man one post, the Darul Uloom executive council unanimously approved a proposal that if any of the seminary executive council members is also a member of executive committee of either faction of JUH, he will resign immediately.
Harshly condemning the vandalism at the seminary campus, the executive council constituted a committee to enquire into the case and submit its report soon. The council expressed grave concern over the JUH crisis and the involvement of some leading office bearers of Darul Uloom in the dispute.
It asked students and teachers of Darul Uloom to refrain from the JUH dispute. However, it urged its members and JUH office bearers in the seminary to find out a solution to the crisis.
Seven members attended the executive council meeting of the seminary. They included Maulana Marghubur Rahman, Maulana Ghulam Rasool Khamosh, Hafiz Siddique, Mufti Manzoor Kanpuri, Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, Maulana Abul Qasim Nomani and Maulana Naseer Ahmad Khan.