Muhammad Mian Mansoor Ansari (10 March 1884 – 11 January 1946; Arabic,

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

and Persian: ), was a leader and a political activist of the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

. He was a grandson of Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, one of the founders of

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 ...

in 1868.Muhammad Mian Mansoor Ansari on GoogleBooks website
Retrieved 28 August 2019 Along with Mahmud Hasan Deobandi, he was one of the pioneer of the Silk Letter movement against British Raj.

Early life

Muhammad Mian Mansoor Ansari was born into an Ansari family in Saharanpur. He grew up in the house of Abdullah Ansari. Mansoor Ansari returned to the Darul-Uloom Deoband and gradually became involved in the Pan-Islamic movement. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he was among the leaders of the Deoband School, who, led by Mahmud Hasan Deobandi, left India to seek support of the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,; ; , ; were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulga ...

for a Pan-Islamic revolution in India in what came to be known as the Silk Letter Movement.

Silk letter movement

These letters were written on

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

cloth, hence the name. The hero of Silk Letter Movement, Maulana Muhammad Mian Mansoor Ansari, the one who went to

Hejaz Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

with Maulana Mahmud al-Hasan in September 1915 and worked as treasurer of the Jama’at. He returned to India in April 1916 with Ghalib Nama (Silk Letter) which he showed to freedom fighters in India and the autonomous area and then took it to Kabul,

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

in June 1916.Fight for Freedom on deoband.com website
Retrieved 28 August 2019

Later years

Mansoor Ansari went to Kabul during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

to rally the Afghan Amir Habibullah Khan. He joined the Provisional Government of India formed in Kabul in December 1915, and remained in Afghanistan until the end of the war. He traveled to

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and spent two years in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, passing through many other countries. He was one of the most active and prominent members of the faction of the Indian Freedom Movement led by Muslim traditional scholars' class who were chiefly from the

. In 1946, the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

requested him to return to India and the

British Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

gave him the permission to do so. But he decided to remain at Kabul, where he began a programme teaching and translating Tafsir Sheikh Mahmudul Hassan Deobandi (known as Kabuli Tafseer).

Literary works

Ansāri wrote following books: * ''Hukūmat-e-Ilāhi;;'' * ''Asās-Inqelāb'' * ''Dastoor-e-Imāmat''

Death and legacy

In 1946, Muhammad Mian Mansoor Ansari turned seriously ill and subsequently died on 11 January 1946 at

Jalalabad Jalalabad (; Help:IPA/Persian, ͡ʒä.lɑː.lɑː.bɑːd̪ is the list of cities in Afghanistan, fifth-largest city of Afghanistan. It has a population of about 200,331, and serves as the capital of Nangarhar Province in the eastern part ...

Nangarhar Province Nangarhār (Pashto: ; Dari: ), also called Nangrahar or Ningrahar, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country and Border, bordering Logar Province, Logar, Kabul Province, Kabul, Laghman Province, Laghm ...

and was buried there. His son Hamid al-Ansari Ghazi was the editor of Madina.

References