Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh

Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh (Bengali: আবু জাফর মোহাম্মদ সালেহ; 1915 – 13 February 1990), popularly known as the Pir of Sarsina, was a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar.[1] He was said to have contributed to the establishment of 3000 educational institutions. Saleh had also pushed for the establishment of the Islamic Arabic University and ibtedayi madrasas in Bangladesh.[2] Despite being a recipient of the Independence Day Award,[3] he has been accused of collaborating with the Pakistan Army and committing war crimes during the Bangladesh Liberation war.[4]

Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh
আবু জাফর মোহাম্মদ সালেহ
Personal
Born1915
Sarsina, Swarupkati, Backergunge District, Bengal Province
Died13 February 1990(1990-02-13) (aged 74–75)
Sarsina, Nesarabad, Pirojpur District, Bangladesh
Resting placeSarsina Darbar Sharif graveyard
ReligionIslam
ParentNesaruddin Ahmad
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceHanafi
EducationDarussunnat Kamil Madrasa
Mazahir Uloom
Darul Uloom Deoband
TeachersNesaruddin Ahmad
Zakariyya al-Kandhlawi
Arabic name
Personal (Ism)Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ
محمد صالح
Patronymic (Nasab)ibn Nithār ad-Dīn Aḥmad ibn Ṣadr ad-Dīn ibn Ẓahīr ad-Dīn
بن نثار الدين أحمد بن صدر الدين بن ظهير الدين
Teknonymic (Kunya)Abū Jaʿfar
أبو جعفر
Epithet (Laqab)Pīr Ṣāḥeb Sārsīna
পীর সাহেব ছারছিনা
Toponymic (Nisba)Ākhūnd
آخوند
al-Barīsālī
البريسالي
Muslim leader
Influenced by
AwardsIndependence Day Award (1980)
2nd Pir of Sarsina
In office
31 January 1952 – 13 February 1990
Preceded byNesaruddin Ahmad
Succeeded byShah Muhibbullah

Early life and family

Saleh was born on a Thursday in 1915, to a scholarly Bengali Muslim family of Pirs in the village of Sarsina in Swarupkati (later renamed to Nesarabad), Firozpur, then situated in the Backergunge District of the Bengal Province. His father, Nesaruddin Ahmad, was a khalifah (spiritual successor) of Furfura Sharif's Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique and the inaugural Pir of Sarsina. His grandfather, Haji Sadruddin Akhand, and great-grandfather, Munshi Zahiruddin Akhand, were also prominent Sufis of the Greater Barisal region.[5]

Education

Saleh began his education under his father. He enrolled at the Darussunnat Kamil Madrasa in Sarsina – one of the most prominent institutions in greater Barisal, founded by his father in 1915. Saleh studied several books there including the Mishkat al-Masabih. He then set off for Hindustan, where he studied at the Mazahir Uloom seminary of Saharanpur. He completed his studies there by reciting the Kutub al-Sittah to his teachers. Among his teachers in Saharanpur were Zakariyya al-Kandhlawi, Abdur Rahman Kamilpuri, Allamah Asadullah and Allamah Siddiq. Saleh was then admitted into Darul Uloom Deoband where he maintained a cordial relationship with Hussain Ahmed Madani.[6]

Career

After his father's death in 1952, Saleh inherited the leadership of Sarsina Darbar Sharif and the chairmanship of the Darussunnat Kamil Madrasa. Saleh supported Abdus Sattar, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party candidate for presidency in 1988.[7] He headed the Bangladesh Jamate Hizbullah Hazrat and Bangladesh Jamate Ulema.[8]

Controversy

Saleh was awarded by the Government of Bangladesh with the Independence Day Award, the highest civilian honour, for his contribution to the education sector of Bangladesh in 1980. During this time, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party was in power.[9] The Awami League government has thought of revoking this award as various government documents claim that Saleh was involved in crimes against humanity. Among them is the book "War of Independence of Bangladesh: Documents" (Vol. 7) and "Where are the killers and brokers of 1971", which give direct account of his crimes.[4] It has also been said that he enjoyed friendly relations with the Pakistan Army during the war.[10]

Death

Saleh died on 13 February 1990, and was buried near his father in Sarsina.[6]

References
  1. মুক্তিযুদ্ধে শর্ষীনার পীরের ভূমিকা: প্রতিবেদক শওকত মিল্টনকে প্রাণনাশের হুমকি. Priyo.com (in Bengali). Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  2. "শতাব্দীর ঐতিহ্যধন্য ছারছীনা শরীফ". Muktibani (in Bengali). Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  3. Rahman, Syedur (27 April 2010). Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh. Scarecrow Press. p. 350. ISBN 978-0-8108-7453-4.
  4. বিতর্কিতদের স্বাধীনতা পুরস্কার বাতিল হচ্ছে. Kaler Kantho (in Bengali). Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  5. Ahmed, Siraj Uddin, ed. (1993). বরিশাল বিভাগ পরিচিতি. Dhaka: Greater Bakerganj-Patuakhali Society. pp. 36–37.
  6. al-Kumillai, Muhammad Hifzur Rahman (2018). "الشيخ الفاضل العلامة أبو جعفر صالح بن مولانا نثار الدين بن الصوفي ظهير الدين أخوند، رحمه الله تعالى". كتاب البدور المضية في تراجم الحنفية (in Arabic). Cairo, Egypt: Dar al-Salih.
  7. Chakravarti, S. R.; Narain, Virendra (1986). Bangladesh: Domestic politics. South Asian Publishers. ISBN 978-81-7003-068-3.
  8. Hossain, Golam (1988). General Ziaur Rahman and the BNP: Political Transformation of a Military Regime. University Press. p. 45.
  9. এবার স্বাধীনতা পদক পেলেন ১৬ ব্যক্তি ও সংস্থা. NTV (in Bengali). 1 December 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  10. "I cannot remember anything". Dhaka Tribune. 26 March 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
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