Sir Syed Day Celebrated in Qatar 2014

Jeddah Aligs recall Sir Syed’s contribution

JEDDAH: Published — Monday 24 November 2014

The Aligarh Muslim University Old Boys Association (AMOUBA) celebrated the 197th anniversary of its founder, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, at the Indian Consulate on Friday.
The function was held with aplomb under heavily overcast skies which failed to dampen the spirits of the large gathering of Aligs and prominent members of the Indian community living in Jeddah.
The Sir Syed Dinner, as it is generally known, was attended by Consul General B.S. Mubarak, Naseem Ahmed, former AMU vice chancellor and currently chairman of the Minorities Commission of India. Shehzad Mohammed Khan and Saudi diplomat and columnist Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi attended as chief guests while Asrar Ahmed Siraj was honored as the most senior Alig. The event got off with Farzan Ahmed Rizvi, president of the AMU Alumni Committee, welcoming the guests.
Naseem Ahmed regaled the audience with his time in Aligarh and paid glowing tribute to Sir Syed. He highlighted a famous incident when Sir Syed, in his efforts to establish the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College, danced to collect funds. Remarking that no effort was too small, he urged the Alig expats to revive Muslim institutions back home.
Shehzad Mohammed Khan touched on Sir Syed’s visit to the UK to study the Western system of education which would form the model for the MAO College and later the Aligarh Muslim University. He called upon Aligs to form an international directory and open schools for the minorities in India.
The consul general also urged Muslims to strive for higher education and expressed his desire to be appointed as the AMU vice chancellor in the future.
Azizurrab released the new directory with the cooperation of the guests and members of the executive committee.
Mementos to the honored guests were presented by Farzan Ahmed, Azizurrab, Nooruddin Khan, Imran Ansari, Imtiaz H. Ahmed, Mumshaduddin, Athar Rasool, Asim Zeeshan and Rabnawaz Khan. The guests also received a bouquet from children.
Aqeel Jamil, general secretary, briefed the gathering on the activities of the AMU committee.

Sir Syed Day celebrated in ALKHOBAR

ALKHOBAR: 25 December 2014

The Eastern Province-based alumni of India’s Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) held a celebration here recently to remember the contribution of AMU founder Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.
At a packed event, former member of the Indian Parliament Mohammad Adeeb, who was the chief guest, said the community should make sure it is politically empowered and take up its rightful place in the country.
In his address, he claimed that there are thousands of innocent Muslims locked up in various jails in the country for years on trumped up charges. “I raised their plight in Parliament during my term as a Rajya Sabha member and will continue to work for their release,” he said.
Senior alumnus Mukarram Ali Khan, who is well known for his repartee and humorous speeches, said Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was born in October, which is an auspicious month.
“As such, his personality was a combination of all those great leaders and rulers who were born in the month of October like Mogul Emperors Akbar and Aurangzeb, and the beloved father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi,” he said. Khan teaches at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.
Prominent educator and industrialist Nadeem Tareen, who was recently conferred with an honorary doctorate by the AMU, said education is the only way to empower people and eradicate poverty. He proposed to set up an education fund that would help finance a chain of schools and technical institutes across the country. “This will be a fitting tribute to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan,” he said.
Top business executive Azizurrab was the guest of honor. He asked people to join the movement he founded, Each One Teach One. He proposed to open more technical schools so that people could boost their skills and get better jobs.
Prominent among those who attended the event and also helped to organize it were Shariq Jamal Shamsi, Rahat Sultan, Parvez Askari, Muzaffar Mohiuddin Khan, Ehsan Siddiqui, Javed Hafeez, Anis Bakhsh, Naheed Siddiqui, Shoaib Quraishi, Abdullah Manjeri, Javed Ali Khan, E.K. Mohammed Shaffe, Lt. Col. J.A. Rocque, Memoona Tabassum, Mohammed Ajmi Khan and Sabir Imam.
Prominent Toastmaster Kaleem Ahmad anchored the event

Aligarians celebrate Sir Syed Day

 

Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi
 THE Aligarh Muslim University Alumni Jeddah chapter celebrated Sir Syed Day on November 21 at the Indian Consulate in Jeddah where hundreds of AMU old boys with their families attended the function. Naseem Ahmad, chairman of the minorities’ commission of India and former VC of AMU, was the chief guest and Indian Consul General in Jeddah B.S. Mubarak and Shahzad M. Khan were guests of honor who spoke of the life and work  of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. Consul General Mubarak shared his experience of meeting some Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza who had studied at AMU and who still have good memories of Aligarh and India. It is difficult to cover the story of Aligarh without saying something about the great man who worked hard for its foundation.

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan is one of the architects of modern education in the Indian subcontinent. He was born in Delhi in 1817 into a wealthy family which followed strict Mughal tradition which exposed him to politics from an early age. His mother Azis-u-Nisa played a formative role in Sir Syed's early life. She applied rigid discipline with emphasis on modern education as well as traditional studies. Although he studied Arabic, Persian and Urdu and learned to read and understand the Holy Qur'an and Islamic jurisprudence, Sir Syed also studied law and obtained a degree in law and was appointed as a clerk in court and later promoted to the rank of judge in the East India Company.

When the Indian mutiny took place he was working in the court and was not involved in the mutiny and was able to save many British lives which gave him a strong position when later he defended the cause of Muslims. After the mutiny Sir Syed authored the booklet "The Causes of Indian Revolt" in which he discussed the causes of the revolt and came to the conclusion that it was not true that it was a conspiracy of the Muslim elite. In fact he put the blame on the British East India Company and the ignorance of British politicians of Indian culture. One of his friends asked him to burn the copies he had already printed of the booklet as he thought it would endanger his life. But Sir Syed replied that he was bringing the matter to the attention of the British for the good of his own people, for his country and for the British government itself. The work was accepted by some British officials as a sincere report but some others, like the foreign secretary, were against it calling it seditious. They demanded an inquiry and said that if the author did not give an accepted justification, he should be punished severely. However, no harm came to Sir Syed because his sincerity, integrity and selflessness were recognized by those who were in power.

The range of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan's literary interest was very wide: history, politics, archaeology, journalism, literature, religion and science. He made contributions in these fields, but his main interest was education because he was deeply concerned with the state of backwardness of Muslims of India. After the failure of the Indian mutiny, Muslims suffered the most.  They isolated themselves because the British put the major part of the responsibility on them as they were accused of planning the rebellion. Sir Syed worked hard to change the concept of the British toward Muslims while he also endeavored to convince Muslims to adopt modern education. He recognized the critical role of education in the empowerment of the poor and backward Muslim community. He started preparing for the formation of a Muslim university by opening various schools. He opened a modern school in Muradabad in 1859 and in 1863 he founded another modern school in Ghazipur.  When he was transferred to Aligarh in 1864, he established the scientific society of Aligarh which was the first of its kind in India. He wanted it to be on the model of the Royal Society of England. He made a trip to England and visited Oxford and Cambridge universities with the dream of establishing a similar university in India. When he established Mohammadan Anglo-Oriental College, he had the intention of turning it into a fully fledged university as prestigious as Cambridge or Oxford. He planned to build a mosque attached to every college and to make it mandatory for every Muslim student to offer prayers. Bad and abusive words and smoking cigarettes were strictly prohibited. It was also strictly enforced that Shia and Sunni boys would not discuss their religious differences in the college or in the boarding house. The college became the present Aligarh Muslim University which is one of  the best universities of India accommodating students from all over the world.        
 — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs.

 

Sir Syed remembered worldwide on 197th birth anniversary

on 20 October 2014

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,

Aligarh: 197th Birth Anniversary of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was celebrated with great zeal and exuberance in different parts of the world. The Alumni Associations all over the globe paid rich tribute to Sir Syed, the great social reformer and one of the architects of modern India.

Hosting celebrations in Washington DC, USA (Metro Area), Mr Mustafa and Dr Afshan Hashmi paid their respect to Sir Syed Ahmd Khan and admired his role as a reformer and benefactor to the Muslim community. She read out the message of the Vice Chancellor, Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah. In his message addressed to the AMU alumni of Washington DC, the Vice Chancellor said, “AMU is one of the leading Universities of India and is producing scholars with “Adab”, “Tehzeeb” and “Lehaz”, the hallmark of educated and cultured people imbued with manners and good breeding.” He hoped that Dr Afshan Hashmi would help motivate students to gain skills and training to become ready for job market.

Sir Syed Day Celebration at Washigton DC

Dr Shahid Jameel, CEO, The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance highlighted the ideas of Sir Syed and stressed importance of reviving translation project started during the early phase of the Aligarh Movement. The meeting was presided over by Mr. Islam A Siddiqui. Dr Tahseen Mirza, Mrs Tabassum Siddiqui, Farrah Khan, Aley Ahmad Hashmi, Uzair Asadullah, Akhaq Siddiqui, Rukhsana, Dr Saeed Khan, Mrs Humera Khan, Dr Khalid Masood, Dr Aftab Ansari, Dr Hashima Hasan, Dr Rahat Khan, Ariena Rashid and Mohammad Rashid were present on the occasion.

The students and faculty members of Yeungnam University and Kyungpook National University in Daegu, South Korea jointly celebrated Sir Syed Day. Mohammad Muqeet Khan, UGC BSR Fellow, Department of Geography, Faculty of Science, AMU informed that, on the occasion, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was remembered by for his role in educational as well as social upliftment of Muslims.

Sir Syed Day Celebration at Washigton DC

The celebrations at Tabuk, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia marked with enthusiasm, in which Dr Mohammad Mujahid, Department of Physics, Dr Faizan Ahmad Khan, Dr Dilshad Ahmad, Dr Tariq Iqtidar Khan, Dr Miraj Ahmad Khan and Dr Ghulam Moinuddin Chisti , Department of Mathematics, University of Tabuk participated with utmost commitment.

Kishanganj Centre: The Kishanganj Centre of the AMU also organized a literary and cultural evening to mark the 197th birth anniversary of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, the founder of AMU.

On the occasion, Chief Guest, Maulana Asrarul Haque Quasmi, Member of Parliament, Kishanganj, highlighted the everlasting and perennial vision of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. In his address, Maulana Qasmi mentioned Sir Syed’s contribution towards social uplift, peace and communal harmony.

AMU Kishanganj Centre celebrates Sir Syed Day

Quoting Sir Syed that “India is a beautiful bride and Muslims and Hindus are its two eyes”, Maulana stressed the need for inter cultural and religious affinity and mutual tolerance. He said that the establishment of AMU Kishanganj Centre could be made possible only because of a concerted effort of the then Central Government, State Government of Bihar, District Administration, AMU administration and people of the region.

The District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, Kishanganj graced the occasion as guests of honour. They also expressed their views on contributions of Sir Syed. In addition to this, public representatives, AMU alumni, prominent citizens of Kishanganj and students of the centre highlighted various aspects of Sir Syed’s thought and his educational movement.

At Kennedy Auditorium:

The Sir Syed Day Celebrations, 2014 at Kennedy Hall was organised by Alumni Association of ABK High School, AMU, Aligarh and presided by Dr. Shakeel Samdani, senior faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University.

Sitting A. Niyazi, Prof. Shakeel Samdani, Imran with the winners.

Hosting celebrations in Washington DC, USA (Metro Area), Mr Mustafa and Dr Afshan Hashmi paid their respect to Sir Syed Ahmd Khan and admired his role as a reformer and benefactor to the Muslim community. She read out the message of the Vice Chancellor, Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah. In his message addressed to the AMU alumni of Washington DC, the Vice Chancellor said, “AMU is one of the leading Universities of India and is producing scholars with “Adab”, “Tehzeeb” and “Lehaz”, the hallmark of educated and cultured people imbued with manners and good breeding.” He hoped that Dr Afshan Hashmi would help motivate students to gain skills and training to become ready for job market.

Sir Syed Day was celebrated by the students and faculty members of Yeungnam University and Kyungpook National University in Daegu, South Korea

Dr Shahid Jameel, CEO, The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance highlighted the ideas of Sir Syed and stressed importance of reviving translation project started during the early phase of the Aligarh Movement. The meeting was presided over by Mr. Islam A Siddiqui. Dr Tahseen Mirza, Mrs Tabassum Siddiqui, Farrah Khan, Aley Ahmad Hashmi, Uzair Asadullah, Akhaq Siddiqui, Rukhsana, Dr Saeed Khan, Mrs Humera Khan, Dr Khalid Masood, Dr Aftab Ansari, Dr Hashima Hasan, Dr Rahat Khan, Ariena Rashid and Mohammad Rashid were present on the occasion.

Sir Syed Day Celebration at Tabuk

The students and faculty members of Yeungnam University and Kyungpook National University in Daegu, South Korea jointly celebrated Sir Syed Day.Mohammad Muqeet Khan, UGC BSR Fellow, Department of Geography, Faculty of Science, AMU informed that, on the occasion, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was remembered by for his role in educational as well as social upliftment of Muslims.

Sir Syed Day Celebration at Bahrain.

The celebrations at Tabuk, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia marked with enthusiasm, in which Dr Mohammad Mujahid, Department of Physics, Dr Faizan Ahmad Khan, Dr Dilshad Ahmad, Dr Tariq Iqtidar Khan, Dr Miraj Ahmad Khan and Dr Ghulam Moinuddin Chisti , Department of Mathematics, University of Tabuk participated with utmost commitment.

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