JEDDAH, 12 March 2008 — Renowned educationist Syed Shah Khusro Hussaini, who is currently visiting the Kingdom on Umrah, has called on Muslims to join non-Muslims to open a new era of peace and communal harmony in India.
Khusro, president of the Khaja Education Society (KES), a philanthropist and Islamic scholar, said education is a means to uplift the downtrodden and that is why the KES has concentrated on this sector irrespective of caste, creed or religion.
KES was established in 1958 at Gulbarga, north of Karnataka state, India. The society is indebted to the late Syed Muhammad Al-Hussaini, who laid the foundation of the institution five decades ago. The KES is a minority society registered under the Mysore Societies Registration Act 1960 and is recognized by the Indian government and approved by the MCI New Delhi. There are 16 educational institutions at KES catering for around 12,000 students in fields of medicine, engineering, computer science, electronics, bio-medical engineering and aeronautical engineering, starting from pre-primary schools.
At all its institutions, the society strives to develop students’ personalities. Excellent infrastructure, well equipped laboratories, libraries, computer laboratories, fiber optic Internet connectivity exist in all institutions. Khusro’s visionary, dynamic and relentless efforts, meticulous planning and support from other management members have made it possible for him to transform KES into a educational complex buzzing with academic, extracurricular and sports activities. The society has also given equal importance to girls’ education by establishing schools and colleges exclusively for girls and stresses on sports activities.
Khusro said Muslims should pay attention to scientific research if they want to revive the golden era of Islamic civilization like the one that prevailed in Baghdad. He believes that an educational revolution is taking place in India and that madrasas, which confined themselves to religious education, must today acquire licenses for technical and medical institutes. The idea is to enable madrasa students to get to grip with modern education and help them land jobs in India’s highly competitive job market.
Admitting the high percentage of illiteracy in the Arab and Muslim world, Khusro stressed the urgent need for the survival of the vital role of Islamic Auqaf (Endowment) in financing scientific research.
He added that human beings should be exposed to culture and blamed some satellite TV channels for promoting shallow programs. “Today we are living through a crisis of man,” Khusro said.
The renowned educationist praised Saudi Arabia’s efforts to enhance the welfare and safety of pilgrims and develop the Two Holy Mosques. “Saudi Arabia can do more to strengthen Muslim education and unity, especially in narrowing differences among Muslim countries,” he said. Khusro also lauded the noble contribution of the King Fahd Printing Press in Madinah for printing and distributing millions of copies of the Qur’an to Muslims across the world. “It is really highly remarkable that the press in Madinah has translated the holy book in English as well as several other languages and distributed it among Muslims the world over. It certainly will help those who cannot read and understand Arabic. A big chunk of Muslims in other parts of the world will certainly get to know the Qur’anic message in the language they understand,” he said.
The translation of the Holy Book will also help non-Muslims to improve understanding of our religion and its teachings, and this is what is needed and this is right time to dispel doubts and misconceptions about Islam and Muslims, Khusro said. He also called on Muslims across the globe to propagate the right Islam among other communities in its true spirit and stressed the need to project “true Islam” to counter an orchestrated campaign of misinformation. “It is the prime duty of the Muslim Ummah to invite nonbelievers to understand the true spirit of Islamic teachings by presenting before them the correct picture of Islam,” he added.
He pointed out that the Muslim should strive to conquer the hearts and minds of people around them with their exemplary moderate way of life, character, simplicity and day-to-day conduct.
Khusro, who commands considerable following in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, said recent events in the country are not the end of the road for Indian Muslims. “A large body of secular non-Muslims in the English media, the judiciary and the government have taken up the case of Indian Muslims,” said Khusro. “It is now the duty of Muslims to strengthen the hands of these peace-loving non-Muslims,” he added.