Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari (Urdu سید عطاء اللہ شاہ بخاری) (23 September 1892 – 21 August 1961), was a Hanafi Islamic scholar and a Religio-political figureChaudhry Afzal Haq, Tarikh-e-Ahrar, (Lahore:Maktabah Majlis-e-Ahrar, 1940) P.47 from the Indian subcontinent. He was one of the Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam's founding members. His biographer, Agha Shorish Kashmiri, states that Bukhari's greatest contribution had been his germination of strong anti-British feelings among the Indian Muslims.Samina Awan, Political islam in colonial Punjab Majlis-e-Ahrar 1929–1949, P.153, Politics of Islamic symbolism, The MAI: Politics of Personalities, Oxford University Press
He is one of the most notable leaders of the Ahrar movement which was associated with opposition to Muhammad Ali Jinnah and opposition to the establishment of an independent Pakistan, as well as opposition to the Ahmadiyya Movement.
He is considered as a legendary rhetoric, which made him famous among the Muslims.
Birth and education Born in Patna, British India, in 1892, to a Punjabi speaking Father from village Nagrian; Gujrat Pakistan and Bihari mother . he received his early religious education in what is now Gujrat, Pakistan and learned the Qur'an by heart from his father Hafiz Syed Ziauddin.Shorish Kashmiri, Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari (Lahore: Maktaba-i-Chattan, 1969), vol. 1, p. 19. He migrated to Amritsar in 1914 when he was 22 years old. He completed his early education by subscribing to a purist view of Islam. Although Bukhari did not subscribe to the Deobandi movement, he was influenced by some Deobandi scholars, including Mahmud Hasan Deobandi.
Bukhari began his career as a religious preacher in a small mosque in Amritsar, and taught the Quran for the next 40 years.Shorish Kashmiri, Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari (Lahore: Chattan, 1978) He shared friendship with a section of socialists and communists but did not accept their ideology completely.Samina Awan, Political islam in colonial Punjab Majlis-e-Ahrar 1929–1949, P.154, Politics of Islamic symbolism, The MAI: Politics of Personalities, Oxford University Press He was ‘imbued with a brilliant exposition of romantic socialism, and led Muslims to a restlessness activism'.Wilfred Cantwell Smith, Modern Islam in India, p. 277. He studied the Sahih BukhariJanbaz Mirza, hayat-e-ameer-e-shariyat, (Lahore: Maktaba-i-Tabsra, 1968), p. 14. in jail when he was imprisoned for an anti-government religious speech.
Religious and political career
He started his religious and political career in 1916. His speeches graphically portrayed the sorrows and sufferings of the poor, and would promise his audience that the end of their sufferings would come about with the end of British rule.Abdul Latif Khalid Cheema, Prof. Abbas Najmi, Syed-ul-Ahrar, p.98 (Maktabah Tehreek-e-Talba-e-Islam, Chichawatni, 1977). As the first step of his political career, he began to participate in the movements of the Indian National Congress in 1921 from Kolkata where he delivered a loaded speech and was arrested on 27 March 1921 because of that speech. He became an eyesore to the administration, and an official view about him said: Ata Ullah Shah is a man, who it is better to lock up in jail, away from Congress leaders than to parley with. He has spent a considerable part of his life preaching sedition. He is an amusing speaker, who can influence a crowd.See REPORT of THE COURT OF INQUIRY constituted under PUNJAB ACT II OF 1954 to enquire into the PUNJAB DISTURBANCES OF 1953 (Lahore: National archives of Pakistan, 1954). After Nehru reportJanbaz Mirza, Karvan-i-Ahrar (Lahore: Maktaba-i-Tabsra, 1968), vol. 1, p. 80. Bukhari created All India Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam with Mazhar Ali Azhar, Chaudhry Afzal Haq, Habib-ur-Rehman Ludhianvi, Hissam-ud-Din, Master Taj-ud-Din Ansari and Zafar Ali Khan on 29 December 1929. Later on the prominent Barelvi orator Syed Faiz-ul Hassan Shah also joined them. He was also the founding father of Majlis-e-Ahrar, Indian nationalist Muslim political movement in India. In 1943, Ahrar passed a resolution opposing the partition of India and "introduced a sectarian element into its objections by portraying Jinnah as an infidel in an attempt to discredit his reputation." He led a movement against Ahmadis and held an Ahrar Tableegh Conference at Qadian in 21–23 October 1934. Bukhari was a central figure in the Khatme Nabuwwat Movement of 1953,REPORT of THE COURT OF INQUIRY constituted under PUNJAB ACT II OF 1954 to enquire into the PUNJAB DISTURBANCES OF 1953 which demanded that government of Pakistan declare the Qadianis as non-Muslims.
Oratory and poetry He became known for his oratory. He was also a poet and most of his poetry was in Persian. His poetic verses were compiled by his eldest son Syed Abuzar Bukhari in 1956 under the name of Sawati-ul-ilham.Syedah Umm-e-Kafeel, Syedi-wa -abi, (Multan:Maktabah Ahrar, Bukhari academy, 2007), P.156
Death Bukhari died on 21 August 1961.Janbaz Mirza, last chapter, hayat-e-ameer-e-Shariyat He is buried in Multan, Pakistan. on Tareen Road Children Complex.
Books Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari's speeches, sermons, and writings have been compiled into several books and collections, reflecting his powerful oratory, deep knowledge of Islamic theology, and unwavering opposition to colonialism and sectarianism. Notable books (and compilations of his work) include:
, The Sermons of Bukhari — a collection of his famous sermons and speeches delivered across India. , The Message of the Ahrar — his speeches and writings on the ideology and mission of the Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam. , Speeches and Essays — selected addresses and articles covering religion, politics, and social reform. , Memorial to Bukhari — a posthumous compilation of his sayings, poetry, and biographical sketches. , The Reality of Qadianism — his critiques of the Ahmadiyya movement, reflecting his prominent role in the Khatm-e-Nubuwwat movement.
References
Sources
Syed Ata ullah shah bukhari ka aqeeda-e-khatm-e-nubuwwat Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhaqri ka khitab (Nawai-waqt Newspaper) Column of Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan Column of Professor Khalid Shibbir Ahmad
Syed-ul-Ahrar, Ameer-e-Shariat, Khateeb-ul-Hind, Maulana Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari (rehmatullah-e-allaih Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari ki zindagi (Nawai-waqt Column)