Hassan Ali Effendi

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Hassan Ali Effendi
Born14 August 1830
Sindh Madrasatul Islam
in 1885 in Karachi
MovementDevoted himself to educating the Muslims in Sindh

Hassan Ali Effendi (

Sindh Madrasatul Islam (established in 1885), located in Karachi in modern-day Pakistan.[1]

Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, who joined the Madressa in 1887, became among the school's famous graduates.[2]

Other notable graduates of the school include

Allama I.I. Kazi.[3]

Background

Effendi was born on 14 August 1830 in

British India.[2] Effendi belonged to a respectable family of Akhunds from Hyderabad, Sindh; he had Turkish ancestry.[4]

While still very young, he lost his father and was brought up by his elder brother Umed Ali Akhund. As according to the tradition of the Akhund family, he was enrolled in a local

Qur'an and learn the basics of the Persian language
.

Upon the completion of this traditional education, Ali found work as a clerk in the office of the Deputy Collector of

Naushahro. One of his Christian colleagues there persuaded him to learn English, a language that was at the time avoided by Muslims in the Indian subcontinent
. Nevertheless, he devoted all his leisure hours to the pursuit of learning English and soon acquired reasonable proficiency in reading, writing and speaking English.

Later, Effendi started to work for the Indus flotilla, a shipping company. In the mid-1860s, while he still worked for the company, a British judge from Karachi by the name of Middleton, happened to cross the Indus river by ferry, spending the night on the ferry boat in order to cross the following morning. Middleton found Hassan Ali Effendi reading an English book by the dim light of an oil lamp. Surprised to discover that the man was a

Public Prosecutor, the first non-European in Sindh
to be in charge of that post, which he would retain for 14 years.

Death and legacy

Effendi died on 20 August 1895 at age 65 at Hyderabad, Sindh, British India.[2] His family includes Wajid Shamsul Hasan, former High Commissioner of Pakistan to the United Kingdom and the former President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, is Effendi's great-grandson through his mother's family.

Sindh Madrasatul Islam

Main article:
Sindh Madrasatul Islam

Effendi began to take an interest in the welfare of the Muslim population in Sindh, and especially the spread of education in these communities.

Syed Ahmed Khan, founder of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College. Wishing to replicate Syed Ahmed Khan's efforts, Effendi even travelled to Aligarh (present-day India) where he sought guidance from him.[3][5]

In 2012,

Sindh Madrasatul Islam School was upgraded to a university and renamed as Sindh Madressatul Islam University.[5]

Commemorative postage stamp

Pakistan Post Office issued a commemorative postage stamp to honor Hassan Ali Effendi for his services in 1990 in its 'Pioneers of Freedom' postage stamp series.[2]

References

  1. ^ Soomro, Faiz Mohammad (1977). Cultural history of Sind. Karachi: National Book Foundation. p. 2. OCLC 5147200.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Profile of Hassan Ali Effendi and image of the commemorative postage stamp". Cybercity-online.net website. Archived from the original on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  3. ^ a b The case for Sindh Madressatul Islam University Dawn newspaper, Published 24 May 2009, Retrieved 9 September 2023
  4. ^ Shaikh, Muhammad Ali (1995). Sindh Madressah: a journey through times. Sindh Madressatul Islam. p. 22. OCLC 35861879.
  5. ^ a b Brief History of Karachi: The Birthplace of Pakistan's Founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah South Asia Investor Review, Published 24 December 2020, Retrieved 9 September 2023
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