Allama Zia Uddin

Mufakkir al-Islām Ḍiyā' ad-Dīn ibn Muqaddas ʿAlī (; born 4 April 1941), better known simply as Zia Uddin or reverentially as Nazim Saheb Huzur , is a Bangladeshi Deobandi Islamic scholar, politician and educationist. He is currently the president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Bangladesh and Azad Dini Adarah-e-Talim, and an advisor to Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh. Uddin is also the director of Jamia Madania Angura-Muhammadpur and a member of Al-Haiatul Ulya Lil-Jamiatil Qawmia Bangladesh's permanent committee. He has played important roles in the 2013 Shapla Square protests and Khatme Nabuwwat movement, and has spoken out against the construction of the Tipaimukh Dam.

Early life and education Zia Uddin was born on 4 April 1941 to a Bengali Muslim family in the village of Kakardia in Beanibazar, Sylhet District. His father, Muqaddas Ali, was a hafiz of the Qur'an, and his mother's name was Khairunnessa Begum. He was the second child of a family of three sons and two daughters.

His education began with his family and in the local maktab of Kakardia. In 1953, he joined the village's primary school. Three years later, Uddin enrolled at the Mathiura Eidgah Bazar Madrasa. The following year, he joined the Darul Uloom Deulgram Madrasa where he completed his middle school studies. He then proceeded to study at Gachbari Jamiul Uloom Madrasa until 1962, before enrolling at Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam in Hathazari. He passed his Master of Arts in Hadith studies from Hathazari in 1965, and studied tafsir (Quranic exegesis) the following year. Thus, he became an ex officio member of Al-Haiatul Ulya Lil-Jamiatil Qawmia Bangladesh's permanent committee. In addition to this, he is the chief advisor to the Tanzimul Madaris Sylhet, as well as advisor of Madania Quran Education Board and Nurani Talimul Quran Board.

Political career In the 1980s, Zia Uddin was the president of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Bangladesh's student-wing Jamiat Talaba-e-Arabia's Sylhet branch. He was elected as the general secretary of the party's Beanibazar branch in 1987. In 1994, he was nominated as the JUI-B general secretary for the entire Sylhet District, and served as this for three terms. He was elected as an assistant secretary for the Jamiat in 2008. In 2011, he became the president of the party's Sylhet branch and served as this for three terms, too. In the same year, he was elected as vice-president for the Jamiat, and he was re-elected on 7 November 2015. After the death of Abdul Momin Imambari on 8 April 2020, Zia Uddin became the president of the nationwide party.

Activism and controversy During his studies at Darul Uloom Hathazari in 1961, Zia Uddin was shot as a result of taking part in a movement against Ayub Khan's "Muslim Family Laws" bill. In 1966, he was injured during a clash with the Barelvis of Chittagong. Birmingham, United Kingdom, 16 May 2017 In 2016, in recognition of his achievements in teaching, he was given a special honour by online organisation.

Personal life and Sufism He completed spiritual studies with Abdul Matin Chowdhury of Fulbari. During an iʿtikāf at Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, Chowdhury declared to his khalifa (spiritual successor), Abdus Sabur, that he has also made Zia Uddin his khalifa. Zia Uddin has one son and six daughters.