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Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadri (Urdu: محمد طاہر القادری) (born February 19, 1951) is an Islamic Scholar from Pakistan. Tahir ul Qadri is the founding leader of Minhaj ul Qur'an International, a worldwide organisation whose stated aim is the establishment of unity and understanding between communities & religions,^[1] and education for the young in the classical Islamic sciences for the promotion of peace.^[2].He is also founder of the Minhaj Welfare Foundation which is for the provision of welfare for the needy^[3] and of the Minhaj International University based in Lahore. Tahir-ul-Qadri is also the founding chairman of the political party Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).

His multilingual skills have made him prominent amongst Muslim scholars as he is fluent in Urdu, Punjabi, English, Arabic, and is learned in Persian and Hindi.

He is the student of Qudwat-ul-Awliya Sayyidna Tahir Allauddin Al Qadri Al Gillani and remained under his guidance for 25 years.^[4]

Family background

Tahir ul Qadri is the son of a scholar named, Dr. Farid-ud-Din Qadri. His ancestors belong to the Sial family of Jhang.

Qadri is married and has two sons and three daughters, Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, Qurrat-ul-Ain Fatima, Aisha Qurrat-ul-Ain and Khadija Qurrat-ul-Ain.

Academic career

• 1974-1975: Lecturer (Islamic Studies), Govt. College Isakhel. (Mianwali)

• 1976-1978: Practiced Law as Advocate, District Courts, Jhang

• 1978-1983: Lecturer (Islamic Law), Punjab University Law College, Lahore

• 1983-1988: Visiting Professor & Head of the Discipline Islamic Legislation (for L.L.M. Classes), Punjab University Law College, Lahore

• 1986-2001: Chancellor The Minhaj University (Pakistan), Professor of Islamic Law for Master Classes (TMU)

• 1986 - up to date: Chancellor and Chief Executive of The Minhaj University (Pakistan)

Positions held

• Chief Executive of Minhaj International University, Lahore (Pakistan)

• Founding Leader of Minhaj-ul-Quran International

• Patron-in-Chief of the chain of Minhaj Education Society (Pakistan)

• Patron-in-Chief of Minhaj-ul-Qur'an Cultural & Educational Centers in more than 70 countries of Asia, Europe, Australia, America & Africa.

• Chairman of the Minhaj-ul-Qur'an Ulama Council, Pakistan

• Founder Chairman of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (Peoples Movement of Pakistan)

• Founder Chairman of Minhaj Welfare Foundation

• Ex-President of Pakistan Awami Ittehad

• Vice President of Al-Mutamar Al-Alami Al-Islam

• Secretary General Al-Ittehad-ul-Alami Al-Islam

Views

Qadri is a Muslim, who doesn't just promote Sunniism he promotes Islam as a religion who should unite.^{[citation needed]}

His main aims and objectives are to promote interfaith dialogue and to suppress the extreme image of Islam. His main effort is towards the betterment of the social, cultural, and religious teachings of Islam, and to enlighten people with the knowledge of their rights and duties and to present a realistic, rational and scientific picture of Islam.

Qadri has criticized Wahhabi doctrines and delivered a series of lectures highlighting their extremist nature. Militant groups, such as al Qaeda and the Taliban, have grown out of the religious extremism propounded by the Wahhabi doctrines. Qadri was one of few religious leaders in Pakistan to condemn the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, and by doing so challenge the Islamic legitimacy of those who advocated violence to advance their religious goals.^[5]

He has denounced and severely condemned Osama bin Ladin.^[6]

He showed great concern, when cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad were published in newspapers around Europe. He sent out a memorandum called 'A call to prevent a clash of civilizations'.^[7][8] The memorandum was noted in the media^[9] and many ministers gave a response.^[10][11]

Qadri was featured by Reuters in August 2009 as a leading Sufi scholar, who is working to bring the western youth away from extremism and to combat extreme tendencies.^[12]

After December 2009 Rawalpindi attack he was quoted as saying "Suicide attacks are not allowed in Islam, these actions are un-Islamic. . . . The slaughter of human beings in any religion or country, and terrorism in all its manifestations, are totally in contradiction with the teachings of Islam."^[13]

On 2 March 2010, Qadri issued a 600-page fatwa, which was an "absolute" condemnation of terrorism without "any excuses or pretexts." He said that "Terrorism is terrorism, violence is violence and it has no place in Islamic teaching and no justification can be provided for it, or any kind of excuses or ifs or buts." Qadri said his fatwa, which declares terrorists and suicide bombers to be unbelievers, goes further than any previous denunciation.^[14]

Religious scholar

Qadri had bayah with Ash-Shaykh Al Syed Tahir Allauddin Al Gillani and became his student.

He has currently delivered more than 6,000 lectures on economy and political studies, religious and social philosophy, law, spiritualism, medical sciences, material sciences and astronomy. These lectures are available in Urdu, English and Arabic at different Islamic Shops around the world.^[15][16][17] Various international TV channels are regularly airing lectures of Tahir-ul-Qadri, such as QTV (ARY), PTV Prime, 4TV Hyderabad (India) and Islam Channel

He has authored some 450 published works in Arabic, English and Urdu.^[18][19][20] Amongst his most notable and recent works are:

• “Dala’il al-Barakat” (10,000 Durood and Salawaat in praise of Muhammad, written in the style of the well-read Dala’il al-Khayrat of Imam Jazuli, which was written nearly 1,000 years ago),
• “Minhaj us Sawi’” (A Hadith compendium compiled in the pattern and style of Imam Nawawi’s “Riyad us-Salihin رياض الصالحين” and Khatib Tabrizi’s “Mishkat al-Masabih” Consisting of approximately 1,000 pages)
• “Mawlid al-Nabi”, the largest ever written work on the subject of Mawlid consisting of approximately a 1,000 pages.

The entire income of Qadri’ s books, recorded audio/video cassettes & CDs of his lectures/addresses, is dedicated forever on his behalf to the Minhaj-ul-Qur’an Movement.^{[citation needed]}

His main English works include:

• Beseeching for Help ^[21]
• Creation of Man ^[22]
• Islam on Prevention of Heart Diseases ^[23]
• Constitution of Madina
• Greetings and Salutations on the Prophet ^[24] (صلى الله عليه و آله وسلم)
• Islam and Politics
• The Islamic State ^[25]
• Islamic Concept of Intermediation ^[26]
• The Ghadir Declaration ^[27]

Those who have received Ijaza from him

Qadri has himself given ijaza to a number of leading Muslim scholars, making them his students, linking them through himself back to the Prophet Muhammad.^[28] These include among many others:

Syria

• Al Faqih Ash Shaykh As’ad Muhammad Saeed as-Sagharji (Head Imam of al-Jame'al-Umayyad, Syria)
• Ash-Shaykh Abul Khayr ash-Shukri (a well renowned Scholar and Khateeb of al-Jame'al-Umayyad, head of al Jamiyyah al-Muhaddith-ul-Akbar, Syria)
• Ash-Shaykh as-Sayyid Abul Hudaa Al-Husayni (Halab, Syria)
• Shaykh as-Sayyid Yusuf Hashim ar-Rifai (A leading Shafi scholar, author and former minister, Kuwait)

Iraq

• Mufti al-Azam Shaykh `Abdur Razzaq as-Sa’di (Head Mufti of Baghdad, Iraq)
• Shaykh Abdul Wahab Al Mash’hadani (a well known Scholar and an author of many books on al-fiqh-ul-Hanafi, Baghdad, Iraq)

Yemen

• Shaykh Habib Umar bin Salim bin Hafeez (founder and principal of Dar al Mustafa, Yemen)
• Shaykh Habib Ali Zain al-Abideen al-Jifri (an eminent scholar in Shafi’i fiqh, Yemen)
• Assayyid Waseem Al Habbal (a learned scholar on Islamic fiqh, Lebanon)

Egypt

• Shaykh Hamdoon Ahmad Bin Abdur Raheem (one of the Egyptian Learned Graduates of Jamia Al Azhar, Egypt)
• Shaykh Abdul Muqtadir Bin Muhammad Alwan (one of the Egyptian Learned Graduates of Jamia Al-Azhar, Egypt)
• Shaykh Yousuf bin Younus Ahmad Abdur Raheem (one of the Egyptian Learned Graduates of Jamia Al Azhar, Egypt)

Indian Sub-continent

• Shaykh Muhammad Khwajah Amin Shareef (Shaykh-ul-Hadith and Head of Faculty of Hadith at Jamia Nizamiyyah Hyderabad (Deccan), India)
• Shaykh Habib-ur-Rahman (Muhaddith Silhati, Bangladesh)

In addition a few hundred scholars from Pakistan.

Europe and America

• Shaykh Abdul Hakim Murad (Lecturer of Islamic studies at Cambridge University, UK)
• Shaykh Babikir Ahmed Babikir (Imam of Yusuf Islam’s Islamia Primary School, UK)
• Shaykh Abdal Aziz Fredricks (An eminent scholar from Glasgow, UK)
• Shaykh Faisal Hamid Abdur-Razzak (Scholar from Toronto, Canada)

Political career

In May 1989, Qadri founded a political party named Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT). The main aims of this political party were to improve the state of human rights, justice and the women's role in Pakistan. Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) other aim was to remove corruption and the value of money in Pakistani Politics.

In 1990, Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) participated in the national elections just one year after it was founded. In 1991, PAT and TNFJ (Tehreek-e-Nifas-e-Fiqh-e-Jafria A shia political group) now known as Tehreek-e-Jafria signed a 'Communique of Unity' in order to promotes social and religious harmony. In another creative move, PAT for the first time in the political history of Pakistan, introduced an idea of "working relationship" between the three national political forces, PAT, TNFJ and Tehreek-e-Istaqlal.

From 1989 to 1993, Qadri continuously worked as an opposition leader tying to indicate the government's mistakes and to suggest ways for improving the situation in the political, educational, and economical fields. In 1992 he presented a complete working plan for interest-free banking in Pakistan covering all kinds of national and international transaction which was recognized and appreciated by all sections of the society including industrial and banking professionals. PAT offices were also opened in major foreign countries.

Qadri continued his research alongside his political career and, in 1996, he presented a thesis on the utilization of an observatory for moon sighting based on the more recent scientific findings.

He was elected as an MNA (Member of the National Assembly) of his Lahore constituent on the Pakistani National Parliament.

During his career some controversy arose, when he allowed a person to prostrate to Qadri.^[29][30].Official sources of Minhaj, claimed this was forged^[31].

See also

• Tahir Allauddin Al Qadri Al Gillani
• Minhaj-ul-Quran International
• Islamic scholars
• Online Quran Project
• Minhaj us Sawi
• The Amman Message
• Contemporary Islamic philosophy

References

External links

• About Dr Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadri
• Official Website of Dr. Muhammed Tahir ul Qadri
• Website of Tahir ul Qadri's, Hadhrat Al Syed Tahir Allauddin Al Gillani
• Minhaj-ul-Quran Research Institute
• Translation of the Holy Quran in English & Urdu
• Online Quran Project includes the English and Urdu Qur'an translation by Tahir al-Qadri.
• Books by Tahir ul Qadri to Read Online
• Speeches by Tahir ul Qadri to Play & Download
• The Official Website of Minhaj-ul-Quran
• Minhaj-ul-Quran UK (United Kingdom)
• Minhaj Encyclopedia (Urdu)
• Sajda karvaate huay