Abdul Haq (, ; 11 January 19127 September 1988), also known as Abdul Haq Akorwi was a Pakistani

Deobandi The Deobandi movement or Deobandism is a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam that adheres to the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. It was formed in the late 19th century around the Darul Uloom Madrassa in Deoband, India, from which the nam ...

Islamic scholar In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

and the founder, chancellor, and Shaykh al-Hadith of the Islamic seminary

Darul Uloom Haqqania Darul Uloom Haqqania or Jamia Dar al-Ulum Haqqania (Pashto/) is an Islamic seminary ( darul uloom or madrasa) in the town of Akora Khattak, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northwestern Pakistan. The seminary propagates the Hanafi Deobandi scho ...

. He also served as vice-president of

Wifaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia, Pakistan Wifaq-ul-Madaris al-Arabia, Pakistan (Urdu: ) is the largest federation of Islamic seminaries in Pakistan, founded in 1959. More than 10,000 seminaries and 23,000 madaris across Pakistan are affiliated with the federation. It controls all the ...

. He was involved in politics as a member of the political party

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (, abbreviated as JUI, translated as Assembly of Islamic Clergy) is a Deobandi Sunni Muslim organization that was founded on 26 October 1945 by Shabbir Ahmad Usmani as a pro-Pakistan offshoot of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUH ...

. He served three times in the

National Assembly of Pakistan The National Assembly of Pakistan, also referred to as ''Aiwān-ē-Zairīñ'', is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate of Pakistan, Senate. As of 2023, the National Assem ...

and was an active proponent of the Khatme Nabuwwat movement. Abdul Haq completed his religious education at

Darul Uloom Deoband Darul Uloom Deoband is an Islamic university and seminary ( darul uloom) in Deoband, Uttar Pradesh, India, at which the Sunni Deobandi Islamic movement began. Established in 1866 by Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, Fazlur Rahman Usmani, Sayy ...

Deoband Deoband is a town and a municipality in Saharanpur district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India, about 150 km (93 miles) from Delhi. Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic seminary and one of the largest Islamic Institutions of India is located ther ...

, India. He taught at Deoband for four years until difficulties arose due to the

independence of Pakistan The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation th ...

. In 1947, he founded Darul Uloom Haqqania in Akora Khattak, one of the first Islamic seminaries to be established in Pakistan. He taught hadith at the madrasah for the rest of his life and was well known by the title "Shaykh al-Hadith". His son,

Sami ul Haq Sami ul Haq (, ''Samī'u’l-Ḥaq''; 18 December 1937 – 2 November 2018) was a Pakistani religious scholar and senator. He was known as the ''Father of Taliban'' for the role his seminary Darul Uloom Haqqania played in the graduation of most ...

, succeeded him as chancellor of Darul Uloom Haqqania. Abdul Haq's sermons have been published by his son in two volumes containing over 1,300 pages, entitled ''Da`wat-i Haq''.

Education

Abdul Haq was born in the city of

Akora Khattak Akora Khattak ( , Urdu: اکوڑہ خٹک ) or Sarai Akora is a town in the Jehangira tehsil of the Nowshera District in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Its location is adjacent to the Kabul River, which converges with the Indus Riv ...

Peshawar District Peshawar District (, , ) is a Districts of Pakistan, district in the Peshawar Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located about 160 km west of the Pakistan's capital Islamabad. The district headquarter is the city of ...

North-West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November ...

(NWFP),

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, the son of Haji Maruf Gul, a local landlord, businessman, and religious scholar. According to family belief, Abdul Haq was born in 1912 or 1914. Muhammad Akbar Shah Bukhari, however, writes in ''Akabir Ulama-i Deoband'' that he was born on "7 Muharram al-Haram 1327 AH, Sunday, corresponding to January 1910". This is an error since Sunday 7 Muharram 1327 corresponds to 31 January 1909, not 1910. Another source gives his date of birth as 7 Muharram 1330 AH (c. 29 December 1911). His ''nasab'' (patronymic) is given as follows: Shaykhul-Ḥadīs̱ Mawlānā ‘Abdul-Ḥaqq ibn Akhūnzādah al-Ḥājj Mawlānā Muḥammad Ma‘rūf Gul ibn Akhūnzādah al-Ḥājj Mawlānā Mīr Aftāb ibn Akhūnzādah Mawlānā ‘Abdul-Ḥamīd ibn Mawlānā ‘Abdur-Raḥīm Akhūnkhel ibn Mawlānā ‘Abdul-Wāḥid Akhūnkhel. Abdul Haq received his early education from his parents. Then for elementary religious studies, he was sent to nearby places in

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

Mardan Mardān is a city in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. Located in the Valley of Peshawar, Mardan is the List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, second-largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (after Peshawar). ...

, and

Chhachh Chhachh or Chach (Hindko: ) is a region located in Punjab, Pakistan between Peshawar and Islamabad at the northern tip of Attock, consisting of an alluvial plain extending from Attock District of Punjab, Pakistan, southwest of Topi and Swabi. ...

. In Mardan, he studied with Inayatullah and Abdul Jamil. Until the age of 16, he had studied locally the books up to ''Mulla Hasan''. For higher studies he traveled further, studying first in

madrasah Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary education or higher learning ...

s in

Meerut Meerut (, ISO 15919, ISO: ''Mēraṭh'') is a city in the western region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Located in the Meerut district, it is northeast of the national capital, New Delhi, and is ...

Amroha Amroha is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is located north-west of Moradabad. It is the administrative headquarters of Amroha district. Geography Amroha is located north-west of Moradabad, near the Sot (सोत) River. Be ...

, Gulavati, and

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

before gaining admission to the prestigious

in Shawwal 1347 (March 1929). Abdul Haq writes of the difficulty he faced in admission, "I arrived at Deoband at such a time when the Bengali and Swati students had quarreled and there was no flexibility in admission policy for

Pathan Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

students. I also had to face the problem of admission." He completed ''daurah'' of hadith, the final stage of the

Dars-i Nizami Dars-i Nizami () is a study curriculum or system used in many Islamic institutions ( madrassas) and Darul Ulooms, which originated in the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century and can now also be found in parts of South Africa, Canada, the Unite ...

curriculum, under the supervision of

Hussain Ahmad Madani Hussain Ahmad Madani (; 6 October 1879 – 5 December 1957) was an Indian Islamic scholar, serving as the principal of Darul Uloom Deoband. He was among the first recipients of the civilian honour of Padma Bhushan in 1954. ...

, receiving his ''sanad-i faraghat'' (graduate degree) in 1352 AH (1933/1934). Some of his other teachers included Rasul Khan Hazarvi, Muhammad Ibrahim Baliyawi, and

Muhammad Shafi Muhammad Shafi (24 January 1897 – 6 October 1976), often referred to as Mufti Muhammad Shafi, was a Pakistani Sunni Islamic scholar of the Deobandi school, a Hanafi jurist and mufti, he was also an authority on shari'ah, hadith, Qur'anic ...

Teaching career

Abdul Haq returned to Akora Khattak and, on the instruction of his father, opened a small

in a

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

adjacent to his house in order to provide a basic and religious education to the children in the area. In 1937, he began a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

which was inaugurated by Husain Ahmad Madani. Soon, the number of students increased and other teachers were appointed. Abdul Haq was later offered a teaching post at

by Madani. After consulting with his father, he joined Darul Uloom Deoband in Shawwal 1362 AH (October 1943). In 1947, Abdul Haq had returned to Akora Khattak during the

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

vacation. After the

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

of Pakistan in 1947, his father did not agree to him returning to Deoband, despite Madani's persuasion and promise of security. Consequently, Abdul Haq founded

in Akora Khattak on 23 September 1947. In the first year, many madrasah students who were unable to return to India came to Darul Uloom Haqqania to complete ''daurah'' of hadith with Abdul Haq. At first he was the sole teacher and had to teach all the books of the

curriculum himself, but over time the number of students grew and other teachers joined. Abdul Haq continued to teach

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

at the school until his death in 1988. Abdul Haq also served as the convener of Wifaq al-Madaris al-Arabiya.

Politics

Abdul Haq joined other Islamic graduates in forming the Pakistani political party

(JUI), which endeavored for the implementation of

Islamic law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

in the country. Abdul Haq was elected to the

in three consecutive elections, his election campaigns being led by his son,

. In 1970, running on the JUI ticket, Abdul Haq was elected to the 5th National Assembly, defeating

Ajmal Khattak Ajmal Khan Khattak (; ; 15 September 1925 – 7 February 2010) was a Pakistani politician, writer and Pashto language poet from North-West Frontier Province (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), who served as the President of Awami National Party. He wa ...

of the

National Awami Party The National Awami Party (NAP) was the major left-wing political party in East and West Pakistan. It was founded in 1957 in Dhaka, erstwhile East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh), by Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani and Yar Mohammad Khan, through th ...

and

Nasrullah Khan Khattak Nasrullah Khan Khattak (1923 – 2 November 2009) was a Pakistani politician, who was the 6th elected Chief Minister of the North-West Frontier Province (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and served from 3 May 1975 to 19 April 1977. Early life and educ ...

of the

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major List of political parties in Pakistan, Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a Cent ...

(PPP). In the 1977 general election, he was elected to the 6th National Assembly, running on the ticket of the

Pakistan National Alliance The Pakistan National Alliance (Urdu: پاکستان قومی اتحاد, Acronym: PNA), was a populist and consolidated right and left political alliance, consisting of nine political parties of the country. Formed in 1977, the country's leadi ...

, a nine-party alliance including JUI. He again defeated Nasrullah Khan Khattak, then Chief Minister of NWFP and provincial president of the PPP. He was elected to the 7th National Assembly in the 1985 general election, which was held on a non-party basis.

Khatme Nabuwwat movement

Abdul Haq was active in the Khatme Nabuwwat movement. In his lectures, he stressed the importance of the concept of finality of prophethood and argued against the interpretations of

Quranic verses The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

and

hadiths Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

used by Ahmadis to support their beliefs. He was one of the signatories of the resolution moved on 30 June 1974 in the National Assembly in support of declaring Ahmadis as non-Muslims in Pakistan.

Soviet–Afghan War

When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, Abdul Haq declared the Afghan resistance to be a

jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...

and an ideological struggle between Islam and

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

. The ruling stating this was issued by Darul Uloom Haqqania. Abdul Haq made monetary contributions in support of the

Afghan Mujahideen The Afghan ''mujahideen'' (; ; ) were Islamist militant groups that fought against the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and the Soviet Union during the Soviet–Afghan War and the subsequent Afghan Civil War (1989–1992), First Afghan Ci ...

and prayed for their success. On many occasions, he expressed his desire to fight, but he was unable to do so due to his old age and failing health.

Sufism

Abdul Haq was a

disciple A disciple is a follower and student of a mentor, teacher, or other figure. It can refer to: Religion * Disciple (Christianity), a student of Jesus Christ * Twelve Apostles of Jesus, sometimes called the Twelve Disciples * Seventy disciples in t ...

of Haji Sahib Turangzai. He gave ''

bay'ah ''Bayʿah'' (, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Bedouin culture it was a procedure for choosing the leader of the trib ...

'' at the hands of other

Sufis Sufism ( or ) is a mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic purification, spirituality, ritualism, and asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are referred to as "Sufis" (from , ), and ...

including

, Khawaja Abdul Malik Siddiqi, and the Faqir of Ipi.

Awards and achievements

*In October 1978, Abdul Haq was awarded an honorary PhD in Divinity from the

University of Peshawar The University of Peshawar (; ; ; abbreviated UoP; known more popularly as Peshawar University) is a public research university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The university is one of the oldest universities in the provi ...

for services rendered in the cause of Islam. *

Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...

(Star of Distinction) by the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

General Zia-ul-Haq Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (12 August 192417 August 1988) was a Pakistani military officer and statesman who served as the sixth president of Pakistan from 1978 until his death in an airplane crash in 1988. He also served as the second chief of ...

, for his religious, educational, and scholarly achievements.

Death

Abdul Haq died on 7 September 1988, at the age of 74 or 76, at

Khyber Teaching Hospital Khyber Teaching Hospital, also known as "Sherpao Hospital" (, , abbreviated as KTH), is a university hospital and the primary teaching affiliate of Khyber Medical College. KTH lies on the historic route that links up to the historic Khyber Pa ...

, NWFP, Pakistan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul Haq 1912 births 1988 deaths People from Nowshera District Pashtun Sufis Deobandis Hanafi fiqh scholars Sunni Sufis Pakistani Sufis Pakistani Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam politicians Pashtun Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam Pakistani MNAs 1972–1977 Pakistani MNAs 1977 Pakistani MNAs 1985–1988 Founders of Pakistani schools and colleges Chancellors of the Darul Uloom Haqqania Pakistani educators Darul Uloom Deoband alumni Vice presidents of Wifaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia