Fazlul Hoque Amini () (194512 December 2012) was an

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 politician from

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. He served as an MP in the

Parliament of Bangladesh The Jatiya Sangsad (), often simply referred to as Sangsad and also known as is the unicameral legislative body of Bangladesh. The current parliament of Bangladesh contains 350 seats, including 50 seats reserved exclusively for women. Elected ...

from 2002 to 2007. He was an expert in the fields of Islamic

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

(

fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

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 ...

and

tasawwuf Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

. He also held a number of positions on the boards of qaumi

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...

hs. He was also the

principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

Jamia Qurania Arabia Lalbagh Al-Jāmiʿah al-Qurʼāniyyah al-ʿArabiyyah Lālbāgh (), better known simply as Lalbagh Madrasah (), is a Qawmi madrasa providing higher Islamic studies in Dhaka, Bangladesh It has seven education sections from kindergarten to post-graduate lev ...

in Lalbagh,

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

, one of the largest

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 ...

madrasa of Bangladesh.

Early life and education

Fazlul Haque was born on 15 November 1945 in the village of Aminpur in Brahmanbaria,

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

. His father was Alhaj Wajed Uddin. He started his education in

Jamia Islamia Yunusia Al-Jāmiʿah al-Islāmiyyah al-Yūnusiyyah (), also known as ''Jamia Islamia Yunusia'' (), is a madrasa, located in the neighbourhood of Paikpara in Brahmanbaria, Bangladesh. It is one of the Qawmi Jamiahs of Bangladesh; and, as of 1998, it co ...

at nine/ten years old before spending three years at Mustafaganj Madrasa in

Munshiganj Munshiganj (), historically known as Bikrampur, is a town in Dhaka division in central Bangladesh. It is the headquarters of Munshiganj District. Munshiganj is one of the world's oldest continually inhabited urban place. Etymology Munshiganj w ...

under Hafiz Muhsinuddin. His father then took him to Ashraful Uloom Bara Katara where he studied under Principal Pirji Huzur. Then in 1961, he enrolled at the

for

Hadith studies Hadith studies is the academic study of hadith, a literature typically thought in Islamic religion to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval of the Muhammad as transmitted through chains of narrators. A major area of inter ...

. In 1969, following the request of

Shamsul Haque Faridpuri Shamsul Haque Faridpuri (; 189621 January 1969) was an Islamic scholar, educationist, and social reformer. He was the founding principal of Jamia Qurania Arabia Lalbagh. He also founded many other madrasas. Organisations that he initiated inclu ...

, Amini advanced his knowledge of

ahadith 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 ...

and

fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ) is the term for Islamic jurisprudence.Fiqh
Encyclopædia Britannica ''Fiqh'' is of ...

by going to

Jamia Binoria Jamia Binoria Aalamia is an Islamic educational institute in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It is regarded as one of the most modern madrassas. Noman Naeem is the principal (chancellor) of the seminary. History Jamia Binoria was founded by Muft ...

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

West Pakistan West Pakistan was the western province of Pakistan between One Unit, 1955 and Legal Framework Order, 1970, 1970, covering the territory of present-day Pakistan. Its land borders were with Afghanistan, India and Iran, with a maritime border wit ...

for one year where he studied under

Muhammad Yousuf Banuri Sayyid Muhammad Yousuf Banuri (7 May 1908 – 17 October 1977) was a Pakistani Islamic scholar, founder of Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia and former President and Vice President of Wifaq-ul-Madaris al-Arabia, Pakistan from 30 May 1973 to 17 October 197 ...

Career

Amini was the chairman of a faction of

Islami Oikya Jote The Islami Oikya Jote (, ''Islami Oikko Joţ'', "Islamic Unity Front") is a political party in Bangladesh and allied with the former Four Party Alliance. History During the legislative elections of 1 October 2001, the party won 2 out of 30 ...

(IOJ), and also a leader of Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat. He was a former component of the BNP-led four-party alliance. In 1970, he became the

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

and

Khatib In Islam, a khatib or khateeb ( ''khaṭīb'') is a person who delivers the sermon (''khuṭbah'') (literally "narration"), during the Friday prayer and Eid prayers. The ''khateeb'' is usually the prayer leader (''imam''), but the two roles can ...

of Alubazar Jame Masjid in

Old Dhaka Old Dhaka () is a term used to refer to the historic old city of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It was founded in 1608 as Jahangirabad or Jahangirnagar (), the capital of Bengal Subah, Mughal Province of Bengal and named after the Mughal em ...

where he also founded a

. In the same year, he became a teacher at Hafezzi Huzur's founded Madrasa Nuriya in Kamrangirchar,

and married Hafezzi's daughter. In 1972, he completed his

hifz In Islam, a Hafiz (; , pl. ''ḥuffāẓ'' , f. ''ḥāfiẓa'' ) is a person who has memorized the Quran. Hafiza is the female equivalent. A hafiz is highly respected by the community. A hafiz or hafiza are given titles such as "Hafiz Sahb" ...

(memorisation of the entire

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

) in nine months. Under the leadership of Hafezzi Huzur, he was a member of the Antarjatik Shanti Mission (International Peace Mission) relating to the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...

. He became a teacher and assistant

mufti A mufti (; , ) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatāwa'' have played an important role thro ...

in 1975. In 1984, he became the Chief Mufti of Lalbagh and later became its principal and Shaykhul Hadith in 1987 following Hafezzi Huzur's death. He also taught at Ashraful Uloom Bara Katara. In 1992, Amini organised a long march protest against the

demolition of the Babri Masjid The Babri Masjid, a 16th-century mosque in the Indian city of Ayodhya, was destroyed on 6 December 1992 by a large group of activists of the Vishva Hindu Parishad and allied organisations. The mosque had been the subject of a lengthy socio ...

Ayodhya Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...

, India. Amini was appointed as the guardian (Muhtamim and Mutawalli) of Ashraful Uloom Bara Katara in 2003. In his home district of Brahmanbaria, he tackled certain non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In 1996, he stood up as a potential candidate for the

Brahmanbaria-2 Brahmanbaria-2 is a constituency of the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) of Bangladesh. Since 6 August 2024 the constituency is vacant. Boundaries The constituency encompasses Sarail Upazila and Ashuganj Upazila. History The constituency ...

constituency, as a part of the Sammilita Sangram Parishad party, however he was unsuccessful. He managed to become MP during the

2001 Bangladeshi general election General elections were held in Bangladesh on 1 October 2001. The 300 seats of the Jatiya Sangsad were contested by 1,935 candidates representing 54 parties and 484 independents. The elections were the second to be held under the caretaker govern ...

as a part of the

party, receiving over 55% of total votes. He was able to create a strong mass movement when the

Bangladesh High Court The High Court Division, Supreme Court of Bangladesh (), popularly known as High Court, is one of the two divisions of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, the other division being the Appellate Division. It consists of the Chief Justice of Bangla ...

ruled in early 2001 to ban the

fatwa A fatwa (; ; ; ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (sharia) given by a qualified Islamic jurist ('' faqih'') in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist issuing fatwas is called a ''mufti'', ...

. During the

2008 Bangladeshi general election General elections were held in Bangladesh on 29 December 2008. The two main parties in the election were the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by Khaleda Zia, and the Bangladesh Awami League Party, led by Sheikh Hasina. The Bangladesh Awam ...

, he stood up for the same constituency with IOJ party but was beaten by Md. Ziaul Haque Mridha of the Jatiya Party.

Views

He spoke out against the Women Development Policy of 2011 and the Education Policy of 2012 formulated by the Awami League government after coming to power in January 2009, saying the proposed legal reforms were anti-Islamic. According to Rashidul Hasan, writing in '' The Daily Star'' in April 2011: Islamic scholars and academics interviewed by ''The Daily Star'' disagreed with Amini, saying there was nothing anti-Islamic about the policies. They said Amini was misinterpreting the

Quran 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 ...

out of ignorance, or was deliberately twisting its words for political gain. At a gathering on 14 July 2011, Amini, speaking about the 15th Amendment to the Constitution, which among other things restored the principle of

secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

and

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty, also known as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice ...

, said, "People will throw the constitution, from where the name of Allah has been dropped, into dustbin ". He was sued for

sedition Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech or organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, establ ...

for this remark, although he argued that it was a figure of speech. On 26 September 2011, the High Court ordered him to surrender to authorities immediately. He spent the remainder of his life under what he termed "

house arrest House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...

", his movements confined by police to his home and the IOJ party office in

Lalbagh Thana Lalbagh () is a neighbourhood of the Dhaka District in the division of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Geography Lalbagh Thana is bounded by New Market Thana on the north, Keraniganj Upazila on the south, Chawkbazar Thana and Shahbagh on the east and Haza ...

, Dhaka. Amini's madrasa is now used as the Dhaka coordination office of Hefazat a Islam Bangladesh.

Death

He died in Dhaka on 12 December 2012 at 12:20 (GMT+6). Following his death, his son, Abul Hasnat Amini, became actively involved with Hefazat-e-Islam. Hefazat-e-Islam, led by Amini's teacher Ahmad Shafi, called for a 13-point movement against the government's policies and the demand of a blasphemy law.

See more

List of Deobandis Deobandis represent a group of scholars affiliated with the reformist Deobandi movement, which originated in the town of Darul Uloom Deoband in northern India. Founded in 1866, this movement sought to safeguard Islamic teachings amidst non-Musli ...

Early life and education

Career

Views

Death

See more

Notes

References

Further reading