Taher Saifuddin

Saifuddin was instrumental in setting up over 350 co-ed institutes,[1][13] some of which bear his name, including but not limited to: Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah in Surat,[14] Saifee Hall in Calcutta,[15] Saifiyah Girls School in Karachi,[16] Saifi High in Mumbai,[17] Saifee Nursery at Saifee Mahal in Mumbai,[18] Saifee Eide Zahabi College in Karachi,[19] Saifee Golden Jubilee Quaderia College in Burhanpur,[20] Saifee Jubilee Arts and Commerce College in Sidhpur. Mohammed Burhanuddin later organized the schools under the banner of MSB Educational Institute[21] (also known as Al Madrasa Tus Saifiya Tul Burhaniyah[22][23]), which are affiliated with Indian Certificate of Secondary Education[24] and, as of 2011, has branches in 22 cities[25] across India, Pakistan, East Africa, and the Middle East.[24] Burhanuddin organized the numerous religious schools world-wide known as Madrasas under the purview of the department of Attalim.[26]

Saifuddin was appointed the Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University[27] for four consecutive terms,[28][29] starting in 1953. Under Saifuddin's chancellorship, Jawaharlal Nehru, first Prime Minister of India, laid the foundation of Asia's largest library, the Maulana Azad Library, at AMU.[30]

Saifuddin from his own personal wealth renovated Dars-e Saifee, an institution of Islamic studies, founded by his predecessor Abdeali Saifuddin c. 1810 in Surat,[32] transformed it in to a university by introducing secular courses and establishing affiliations with international educational bodies, and consequently renamed it Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah (lit. 'The Saifiyah University').[33]

Keeping in line with tradition of his predecessor, Ismail Badr al-Din I,[34][35] the talabat al-ilm (lit. 'seekers of knowledge') of the institution were provided with lodging and meals at full cost to the office of Dai al-Mutlaq.[1][14][35] To further inclusion and expansion, Saifuddin admitted to Aljamea its first female students.[14] As is tradition,[14] in his capacity as Dai al-Mutlaq, Saifuddin personally taught select classes at the newly renovated Academy.[36] Saifuddin brought about a structural and functional change at Aljamea: He personally oversaw the standardization of the syllabus of each class and wrote numerous memoranda and treatises which were instilled into the curriculum.[37] To this day, the treatises written by Saifuddin and his successors, Mohammed Burhanuddin and Mufaddal Saifuddin, are taught through the year[38] and are central subjects of al-Imtihan al-Sanawi (lit. 'the annual exams'),[38][39] among other religious[40][41] and secular subjects.[40]

After succeeding his father, Burhanuddin significantly expanded the reach of Aljamea: He added Mahad al-Zahra, an institute of Quranic studies c. 1976, re-renovated the Surat campus c. 1983, established campuses at Karachi c. 1983, Nairobi c. 2011,[14] and Mumbai c. 2013.[40] Aljamea and its graduates have since become integral to spiritual and temporal aspects of the Dawoodi Bohra community.[21][37][42][43]

Saifuddin with his son and successor Mohammed Burhanuddin c. 1960.

Saifuddin founded Bunaiyat-tul-Eidiz-Zahabi, a volunteer-run organisation of Dawoodi Bohra Women, in the 1950s which set a precedent that led to formation of Burhani Womens Association by his son Burhanuddin; Happy Threads and Supermums by Mufaddal Saifuddin's daughter Umme Haani in 2010s,[42] and The Radiant Arts by Mufaddal Saifuddin's daughter-in-law Zaenab Imaduddin.[44][45]

In a similar vein, Saifuddin established an organisation of Dawoodi Bohra men, Shabab ul-Eid iz-Zahabi, during the Golden Jubilee celebrations of his 50 years in the office of Dai al-Mutlaq,[46][47] exclusively for community service.[46][47][48][49] Mohammed Burhanuddin would later found the Burhani Guards (for crowd-control at miqaats lit. 'religious events'),[50][51] Tolaba ul-Kulliyat il-Mumenoon (of college and school students),[52][53] Burhani Medical Idara (of medical professionals),[54] Saifee Ambulance in India, and Burhani Ambulance in Pakistan (of paramedics and first responders).[55] Mufaddal Saifuddin, on his first visit to North America, established Saifee Burhani Medical Association (America),[56] on 14 March 2015.[57]

Saifuddin presides over a Rasm-e Saifee Nikah in Jamnagar.

To subsidize costs and facilitate marriages among the close knit Dawoodi Bohra, Saifuddin initiated Rasm-e Saifee (lit. 'The tradition of Saifee')[58] in Jamnagar c. 1952 and later institutionalised it c. 1963.[59] Rasm-e Saifee is a singular occasion when multiple Nikah are solemnized at the hands of the Da'i al-Mutlaq and his representatives. Burhanuddin further organized it under International Taiyseer al-Nikah Committee (ITNC) (lit. 'International Committee for Marriage Facilitation'),[59] which organizes Rasm-e Saifee throughout the year at various miqaats (lit. '(religious) gatherings').[60] Burhanuddin's successor, Mufaddal Saifuddin, continues to uphold the tradition.[61][62]

Top (from left): Ras al-Husayn zareeh (Cairo) built by Saifuddin c. 1965; Saifuddin's name inscribed at Al-Aqsa Mosque. Bottom: Mazar e Qutbi (Ahmedabad) and Mazar e Fakhri (Taherabad), both built by Saifuddin.

Saifuddin contributed vast sums of money towards the refurbishment of mosques and shrines. He along with the Nizam of Hyderabad were among the few Indian Muslims to contribute towards the renovation of Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem:[63]

Sultan Taher Saif al-Din is said to have come from India with one hundred and fifty of his followers...At the Jerusalem station he was welcomed by the Mufti and other Sheikhs of the Supreme Moslem Council and a number of Arab notables including Ragheb Bey Nashashibi. A troop of Arab boy scouts paraded in his honour and there were two bands from Moslem institutions...The sultan was reputed to be a man of great wealth who had made substantial contributions to the religious and political funds of the Arabs of this country.[64]

Saifuddin also gifted the internal curtains which were kept in the Kaaba for decades to King Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia in 1354AH, with whom he kept warm relations.[65]

Saifuddin constructed Ghurrat-ul Masajid (lit. 'Pride of Mosques'),[66] also known as Saifee Masjid,[67] in Mumbai, Al-Mahal al-Saifee (lit. 'Saifee Palace') for pilgrims in Mecca, the zarih of Ali Ibn Abi Talib in Najaf and Husayn ibn Ali in Karbala and Cairo, the mausoleum of Qutub Khan Qutub al-Din[68] and Fakhr al-Din Shaheed. He also made and donated the kiswah for the Masjid al-Haram.[66]

The Chandabhoy Galla Case set a significant precedent on the issue of a human's claim to being infallible, immaculate, executor of God's will, and trusteeship of God's funds. The case was filed in 1917, during the British rule of India, by Sir Thomas Strangman, the Advocate General of Bombay, at the behest of Adamjee Peerbhoy's family against the 51st Dai al-Mutlaq of the Dawoodi Bohra, Taher Saifuddin. In 1921, Saifuddin won the case on basis of the belief that Imam, as representative of the Prophet and through him the representative of God, having withdrawn from public life, must entrust someone to represent them the Dai al-Mutlaq (and hence Saifuddin), in accordance with Tayyibi religious belief. Upon conclusion of the case, Strangman noted:[69]

"Looking back on the proceedings, I think what impressed me the most, even more than the extravagance of the claims, was the personality of the Mullaji, a frail looking figure possessed nevertheless of an iron will, great determination, and organising capacity. At the time he assumed office the administration must have been extremely slack. Yet he managed in a very few years not only to pull the administration together but to obtain a hold upon his followers greater perhaps than that of any of his predecessors."

Saifuddin's Risalah (lit. 'epistle') are peculiarly titled gematrically equivalent to the Hijri year of its publication.[84][85]

Saifuddin donated his home Saifee Villa in Dandi, Navsari where Gandhi stayed for ten days during his historic march from Sabarmati Ashram against the English Salt Laws, to Nehru in 1961. It was later converted into a National Museum.[94][95] Present day, it lies adjacent to the 15-acre National Salt Satyagraha Memorial which was inaugurated by Narendra Modi in 2019.[94]

The Syedna Taher Saifuddin School at Aligarh.

The Syedna Taher Saifuddin School at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) is named after him in his honour.[96] Saifuddin was the longest serving chancellor at AMU at 12 years,[28] and was a patron of the Ali Society at AMU.[97]

Saifee Hospital in Mumbai, inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2005, was dedicated to Saifuddin by his successor, Mohammed Burhanuddin, who built the hospital in social service.[98] Saifee Hospital was one of the first responders to 2008 Mumbai Terror Attacks.[99] Another hospital of the same name was built by Mohammed Burhanuddin in Karachi and dedicated to his father.[100]

In 2009 Mohammed Burhanuddin founded Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust (SBUT), a large-scale cluster redevelopment project in Bhendi Bazaar and dedicated it to his father, Saifuddin.[101] The Government of Maharashtra plans to develop Kamathipura, one of the oldest neighborhoods of South Mumbai, after the cluster redevelopment model pioneered by SBUT.[102]

Saifuddin's urs (lit. 'death anniversary') is commemorated annually[103] by the Dai al-Mutlaq at Saifee Masjid, South Bombay.[104] Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah's annual examinations, Imtihan al-Sanawi, commence after the Dai al-Mutlaq delivers the Zikra sermons in remembrance of Saifuddin.[74]

Saifee Hospital in Dar es Salaam.

Shortly after Saifuddin's demise, on 18 March 1966 Mohammed Burhanuddin established His Holiness Dr. Syedna Taher Saifuddin Memorial Trust for educational and medicinal financial aid for institutions and individuals.[105]

In memory of his father Burhanuddin set up Matheran Memorial Hall, a museum and lodging facility in the hill station of Matheran, where Saifuddin died.[106]