Jammat Ali Shah

Pir Syed Jamaat Ali Shah (1834 – 1951) was a Pakistani author, Islamic scholar and Sufi saint of the Naqshbandi Order. He presided over the All India Sunni Conference and led the Movement for Shaheed Ganj Mosque. He was a contemporary of Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi, the founder of Barelvi movement. He gave personal donations to Anjuman Hizbul Ahnaf, a Madrasa founded by Syed Deedar Ali Shah Alwari to propagate the true Islam to the people.

Family background He was born in 1834 in a Sayyid family and his father was Sayyid Karim Shah. His ancestors came to India with Mughal Emperor Humayun and settled in Alipur, Sialkot when Akbar started his new religion, Din-i Ilahi. He established the Anjuman Khuddamus Sufia, Hind. in March 1901, he published the monthly Anwarus Sufia from Lahore.

Leadership in Lahore's Shaheed Ganj Mosque Movement He was a leader in the Shaheed Ganj Mosque movement, which opposed British rule in Lahore. He presided over the first session of the Conference to organize protests. He was appointed the Chief and "Shaheedganj Day" occurred on 20 September 1935 under his leadership.

Leadership of the All India Sunni Conference Between 16 and 19 March 1925, three hundred Sunni scholars met at Jamia Naeemia Moradabad and established Jamiyyat-e-Aliyah-al Markaziah, commonly known as All India Sunni Conference (AISC).

In the first meet from 16 to 19 March 1925, Shah supported the anti-Hindu and anti-Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind stance for Sunni ulemas.

The inaugural session discussed political and social transformation, extremist Hindu movements Shuddhi, the unstable political situation of Muslims, the Khilafat movement, and the possibility of migration. The definition of Sunni was given and policies of Deobandi organisation Jamiat-Ulem-a-Hind and Congress were criticized.

Shah gave the keynote address. He spoke against Wahhabism and in favour of Islamic unity and cohesion.

At the following All India Sunni Conference, held in Badaun during October 1935, he was declared Ameer-e-Millat or leader of Muslim community.

Shah toured throughout the country to get the support of Muslim League and Pakistan. After the passage of Lahore Resolution he supported Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s vision for Pakistan. He told his followers to join and work for the League and declared that he would not lead funeral prayers unless his followers supported the Pakistan Movement.

He served in rehabilitating the refugees and launched the Nifaz-i-Shariat Movement in new country.

Books Relevant works include:

By him Malfūẓāt-i Amīrulmillat : ʻAlá ḥaz̤rat Pīr Sayyid Jamāʻat ʻAlī Shāh Muḥaddis ʻAlīpūrī, teachings. Amīr-i Millat aur Āl Inḍiā Sunnī Conference, speeches delivered at various Sunni Muslim conferences held in India during 1925–1946, supporting the Pakistan Movement. Z̤arūrat-i Murshid : Irshādāt, Islamic views on the need for a spiritual head of a religious order.

About him Fidāyān-i Amīr Millat by Muḥammad Ṣādiq Qaṣūrī, biographical sketches of some noted disciples of Jamāʻat ʻAlī Shāh. 'Makātib-i Amīr-i Millat by Muḥammad Ṣādiq Qaṣūri, correspondence of some disciples. Iqbāl aur Amīr millat by Muḥammad Ṣādiq Qaṣūrī, relations with poet-philosopher Muhammad Iqbal. Sīrat-i pāk Ḥaz̤rat Pīr Sayyid Jamāʻat ʻAlī Shāh Lās̲ānī by Sayyid Irtiz̤á ʻAlī Kirmānī and K̲h̲ālid Yūsuf ʻAbīdī, a biographical study.

Recognition He received award from the Sultan of Ottoman Turkey for his assistance to the people of Medina during a drought and the title "Abu'l Arab" was bestowed upon him. He was authorized to accept Murids into many Sufi orders but he worked in Naqshbandi order of Sufism and It is estimated that he had over 1 million Murids (disciples) worldwide. Sayyid Afdal Husayn Shah is the successor in Jamaat Ali's lineage and serves on Naqshbandiya Foundation for Islamic Education's Advisory Council. Allama Iqbal paid his tribute in his words:Obeisance and paying homage to Hazrat Ameer-e-Millat is a sure token of good fortune.In his collection of poetry, “Zarb-e-Kaleem,” Allama Iqbal has composed the following stanza, entitled “Mard-e-buzurg”: Just like the candle burning at a gathering, he is distinctive but at the same time everybody’s companion. He resembles the morning sun in spreading splendour of inspiration.

Legacy His grandson Pir Syed Munawar Hussain Shah Jamaati is manager of his Dargah and Sajjad Nasheen of Astana-i-Alia Alipur Sayyedan. The death anniversary of Syed Jamaat Ali Shah is observed regularly in Pakistan and in the United Kingdom.

Death He died in 1951 at Alipur, Narowal, Pakistan where his tomb is situated.