Mufti Maulana Akhtar Raza Khan Qadri commonly known as Tajush Shariah by their followers. He was the successor of Mustafa Raza Khan Qadri Barelvi as the Grand Mufti of India and Islamic Chief Justice of India. They belonged to the family of Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi who founded the Barelvi revivalist Movement in South Asia in the 1870s. He was featured in the 500 Most Influential Muslims and ranked as the 26th in 2010, 28th in 2011, 26th in 2012, 22nd in 2013-2014, 22nd in the 2014-2015, 25th in 2016.
Who was Akhtar Raza Khan Azhari?
Azhari was born to Ibrahim Raza Khan on February 1, 1943 in Muhalla Saudagaran near the Dargah Aala Hazrat in Bareilly Sharif, Uttar Pradesh. He took the oath of allegiance to his paternal grandfather Mustafa Raza Khan Qadri in the Qadriyya-Barkatiyya-Razviyya-Nooriyya Order of Sufism. He started his early education under his Grandfather and then enrolled in the Madrasa Yaadgaar-e-Ala Hazrat Manzar-e-Islam for Islamic studies and simultaneously enrolled in the Islamia Inter College for other studies, completing his Intermediate from Islamia. He went to Al-Azhar University, Egypt in 1963 and studied there for 3 years and left Al-Azhar in 1966. He topped the examination at the University level and got the Fakhr-e-Azhar Award by the hands of Gamal Abdel Nasser, then President of Egypt.
He started teaching at Manzar-e-Islam after returning from Al-Azhar, worked till 1980 and then retired from his profession of teacher in Madrasa.
He was elected as the Grand Mufti of India after the death of Mustafa Raza Khan Qadri in 1981.
Tour to Mecca
Once Azhari was on a pilgrimage tour to Mecca for Hajj, he refused to pray behind the Imam of Kaaba reciting that the Imam is of a Wahhabi ideology which Aala Hazrat has refuted around 100 years ago in his book Hussamul Haramain (Husamul Haramain Ala Munkar Wal Mayn), a book written by Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi refuting Wahhabism, Shia, Ahmadiyya, Deobandism. After this, Azhari was arrested by the Saudi Police. On 13 September 1986, Huge protests were held in Indian cities like Mumbai, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Patna under the leadership of Sunni Barelvi scholars against the Saudi government. Later, Azhari was released from the jail. Upon returning from Saudi, Azhari stated:
“to about three o’clock in the evening on August 31, 1986, a C.I.D. and uniformed police officers stepped into my hotel room, and they immediately searched for my passport. Then they insisted on looking through my bags. Then I asked my Purdah-dwelling wife to go to the bathroom. Then someone pointed a gun at me, and I was not asked to move. Then they started going through my bags. At that time, I was in possession of a few volumes that Mawlana Sayed Alawi Maliki had given me and a few books written by A’la Hadrat. A copy of the Dalaa’ilul Khairaat Shareef was also with me. They took these books away and demanded a diary, which I didn’t have. They then confiscated our passports and tickets.”
Recall for performing the Hajj
“The Government of Saudi Arabia has decided to present you with a special Visa so that you may perform the Umrah and may visit Medina Shareef,”
Azhari received a call from the Saudi Embassy in Delhi on May 21, 1987. The duration of this special visa is one month.”
When Azhari arrived to carry out these responsibilities on May 27, 1987, a Saudi Ambassador welcomed him and treated him with the utmost respect and kindness. He was invited to pray inside the Qaba with his family. He was accompanied by his son Mufti Muhammad Asjad Raza Khan to the Pilgrimage.
When he arrived back in India 16 days later, a sizable throng greeted him at the terminals in Mumbai and Delhi.
Denied to meet Bollywood and political figures.
According to Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi, president of All India Muslim Jamaat, Azhari refused to meet Rahul Gandhi, Amar Singh, Sanjay Dutt and other figures who came to meet him for their political benefits. Azhari denied a Member of Legislative Council ticket proposed by former Chief Minister N. D. Tiwari in 1980 when his eldest brother Rehan Raza Khan resigned as a Member of the Legislative Council representing the Indian National Congress after the riots in Uttar Pradesh. He again denied an MLC ticket in 1989 when then Governor Usman Arif asked him to be an MLC.
Works done by Azhari
Azhari established Markazi Darul Ifta, an authority for issuance of Fatwas for Barelvi Sunni Muslims around the World in 1980 and established Jamiatur Raza: Centre of Islamic Studies in 2000 which is now affiliated to Al-Azhar University. He was the President of All India Jamiatul Ulema, President of the Shariah Board and President of the U.P. Muslim Personal Law Council
Death
Azhari died on Friday 20 July 2018 after the prolonged Illness. Namaz-e-Janaza was led by his son Mufti Asjad Raza Khan Qadri at 10 AM on 22nd July 2018 at the Islamia Inter College Ground, Bareilly. The officials of Bareilly marked 21st July 2018 as the Mourning Day due to the death of Azhari. He was buried under the Azhari Guest House behind the Dargah Aala Hazrat. According to the sources, there were approximately 25 Lakhs People attending the Janaza from about 50 to 60 countries. Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee, Akhilesh Yadav and other politicians condoled his death. This is also known as the most attended Funeral in Uttar Pradesh. As per Dargah associates, before this the Funeral of Mustafa Raza Khan Qadri, former Grand Mufti of India was the most attended in Uttar Pradesh.