The graduates of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), who are generally known as old boys, organized in Jeddah last week a function to mark the 196th anniversary of the birth of the university's founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan.
The alumni function was held on the premises of the Indian consulate, as the Indian Consul General is one of the graduates of this premier university. The Guest of Honor at the function was the University's Vice Chancellor Lt. Gen. (Rtd) Zameeruddin Shah, whose presence added much significance, value and meaning to the event. While addressing the gathering, Shah recalled the university's position in the past, explained what it is now, and suggested what it should be in the future. He illustrated a glorious picture with regard to the future of this great university. He pointed out that when the idea of establishing a university came to the mind of its founder, the objective was that educational institutions should play a significant role in the overall development of Muslims, who were a marginalized section in Indian society. The university has now reached a level of expanding its framework of activities to all parts of India through establishing off-campus centers in educationally backward regions. There are two fully functioning off-campus centers located in the cities of Murshidabad in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal and Malappuram in the southern state of Kerala. The university has received several requests from other states to establish similar centers in their regions. Shah also drew attention to the fact that the main message of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was to spread modern education to all parts of India. “While realizing this goal, it is necessary to protect the interests and the minority character of the university, in addition to ensuring an infusion of funding for the parent institution. It has also been essential to take giant steps to push AMU to the zenith of academic excellence, and this cannot be realized without the support of the alumni,” Shah said while urging the alumni to come forward to realize the vision and mission of its founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. After this introduction about the celebration of Sir Syed Day by AMU graduates in Jeddah, I think it is essential to shed some light on this unusual person who came from an aristocratic family, which is said to have migrated from the Arabian Peninsula to Iran and from there to Afghanistan before settling in India. The family had deep bonds with the Mughal dynasty which ruled India for centuries. According to reports, Khan's maternal grandfather was a minister in the royal court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. Ahmed Khan was born in Delhi on 17 October 1817. His mother, who was a strict and God-fearing lady, showed extraordinary interest in the education, character building and upbringing of her son. He learnt the Qur'an, as well as the Persian and Arabic languages from his private tutor, who was a woman. This was not common in Indian Muslim society during that time. Due to financial difficulties after the death of his father, he was forced to abandon studies and join the British East India Company, which ruled India until transferring its power to the British government. Ahmed Khan worked in the company's judicial department in different places and held various posts until he was promoted to the rank of a judge. British colonial rule led to the Indian Rebellion of 1857, which is also known as the Indian mutiny. Ahmed Khan stayed away from the rebellion and the developments related with it. He made efforts to save some European families during the rebellion. Later, he wrote a book titled “Asbab-e-Baghawat-e-Hind” (The causes of the Indian revolt), in which he studied the causes of the rebellion, and blamed the British for the revolt. One of his friends, Rae Shankar Das, begged him to burn the book rather than put his life in danger by publishing it. But Sir Syed insisted on publishing it, saying that he was bringing these matters to the attention of the British for the good of his own people, of his country, and of the British government itself. He said that if he came to any harm while doing something that would greatly benefit the rulers and the subjects of India alike, he would gladly suffer whatever befell him. When Rae Shankar Das saw that Sir Syed's mind was made up and nothing could be done to change it, he wept and remained silent. The top British officials had differences of opinion with regard to the position to be taken about the book. Some of them accepted it as a sincere and friendly initiative to bring the government closer to the people while others considered it to be a dangerous and wanted, therefore, to deal with it harshly. However, in the end all of them accepted it as a sincere effort. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan realized that Muslims in India were in a backward state, and that as a result of holding fast to their traditions, they were apathetic about education. As a result, he took the initiative to open schools and to persuade people to seek modern education. Before opening the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College, he visited Britain, especially the famous universities of Oxford and Cambridge, in order to gain an idea about their syllabi and day-to-day functioning so that he could use this information to develop a model for his new educational initiative. After returning to India, he spent a lot of time thinking and making preparations to open the college that he wanted to later transform into a university along the lines of Oxford and Cambridge. The foundation stone for the college was laid on 24 May 1875 after receiving donations from some rich Muslims. This was the humble beginning of AMU, which is regarded as one of the premier universities in the Islamic world. It is one of the leading Indian universities with students who belong to all religions, cultures and nationalities. Graduates from the university celebrate the anniversary of the founder's birth throughout the world, and the recent Jeddah function was one such celebration. It is impossible in a single article to do justice to the life and work of such a great figure who was a philosopher, social reformer, mentor and academic. In coming articles, I will shed more light on the versatile personality of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan as well as on the great university that he established 138 years ago.
— Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected]
