Abul Kalam Muhiyuddin Ahmed
Azad pronunciation (Bengali:
আবুল কালাম মুহিয়ুদ্দিন আহমেদ
আজাদ; Urdu: ﺍﺑﻮ ﺍﻟﮑﻼﻡ ﻣﺤﯽ ﺍﻟﺪﯾﻦ ﺍﺣﻤﺪ ﺁﺯﺍﺩ
"Abul Kalam Azad") (11 November
1888 – 22 February 1958) was an
Indian scholar and a senior political
leader of the Indian independence
movement. Following India's
independence, he became the first
Minister of Education in the Indian
government. In 1992 he was
posthumously awarded India's
highest civilian award, the Bharat
Ratna.[1] There is also a theory
which suggests that earlier when he
was offered Bharat Ratna he
promptly declined it saying that it
should not be given to those who
have been on the selection
committee. Later he was awarded
posthumously in 1992. He is
commonly remembered as Maulana
Azad; the word Maulana is an
honorific meaning 'learned man',
and he had adopted Azad ( Free) as
his pen name. His contribution to
establishing the education
foundation in India is recognised by
celebrating his birthday as
"National Education Day" across
India. [2]
As a young man, Azad composed
poetry in Urdu language , as well as
treatises on religion and
philosophy. He rose to prominence
through his work as a journalist,
publishing works critical of the
British Raj and espousing the
causes of Indian nationalism. Azad
became the leader of the Khilafat
Movement, during which he came
into close contact with the Indian
leader Mahatma Gandhi . Azad
became an enthusiastic supporter of
Gandhi's ideas of non-violent civil
disobedience, and worked to
organise the non-co-operation
movement in protest of the 1919
Rowlatt Acts. Azad committed
himself to Gandhi's ideals,
including promoting Swadeshi
(indigenous) products and the cause
of Swaraj (Self-rule ) for India . In
1923, at an age of 35, he became the
youngest person to serve as the
President of the Indian National
Congress.
Azad was one of the main
organisers of the Dharasana
Satyagraha in 1931, and emerged as
one of the most important national
leaders of the time, prominently
leading the causes of Hindu-Muslim
unity as well as espousing
secularism and socialism. [3] He
served as Congress president from
1940 to 1945, during which the Quit
India rebellion was launched. Azad
was imprisoned, together with the
entire Congress leadership, for
three years. Azad became the most
prominent Muslim opponent of the
demand for a separate Muslim state
of Pakistan and served in the
interim national government.
Amidst communal turmoil following
the partition of India, he worked for
religious harmony. As India's
Education Minister, Azad oversaw
the establishment of a national
education system with free primary
education and modern institutions of
higher education. He is also
credited with the establishment of
the Indian Institutes of Technology
and the foundation of the University
Grants Commission, an important
institution to supervise and advance
the higher education in the nation.
[3]
Early life
Azad was born on 11 November
1888 in Makkah, Saudi Arabia .
Azad's real name was Abul Kalam
Ghulam Muhiyuddin who became
known as Maulana Azad by
everyone. [4] His forefathers - made
up of scholars and soldiers - had
immigrated to India from Herat ,
present-day Afghanistan, after the
Shi'a Safavids took over Persia and
Babur established the Sunni Mughal
Empire in India. Azad's father was
Maulana Muhammad Khairuddin, a
scholar who authored a dozen of
books and had thousands of
disciples, [5] while his mother was
an Arab, the daughter of Sheikh
Mohammad Zaher Watri, himself a
reputed scholar from Medina who
had a reputation that extended even
outside of Arabia. [4][6] Maulana
Khairuddin lived with his family in
the Bengal region until he left India
during the First Indian War of
Independence and settled in Mecca,
where he met his wife, Zulaikha
Begum (a member of the Bengali
Muslim immigrant family residing in
Medina), and where Maulana Azad
was born, but returned to Calcutta
with his family in 1890. [7][8] Azad
began to master several languages,
including Urdu , Hindi , Persian,
Bengali, Arabic , English,. [4] He was
also trained in the Mazahibs of
[Hanafi], [Maliki], Shafi'i and
Hanbali fiqh, shariat , mathematics,
philosophy, world history and
science by reputed tutors hired by
his family. An avid and determined
student, the precocious Azad was
running a library, a reading room, a
debating society before he was
twelve, wanted to write on the life of
Ghazali at twelve, was contributing
learned articles to Makhzan (the
best known literary magazine of the
day) at fourteen,[9] was teaching a
class of students, most of whom
were twice his age, when he was
merely fifteen and succeeded in
completing the traditional course of
study at the young age of sixteen,
nine years ahead of his
contemporaries, and brought out a
magazine at the same age. [10] In
fact, in the field of journalism, he
was publishing a poetical journal
(Nairang-e-Aalam ) [11] and was
already an editor of a weekly (Al-
Misbah ), in 1900, at the age of
twelve and, in 1903, brought out a
monthly journal, Lissan-us-Sidq ,
which soon gained popularity. [12]
At the age of thirteen, he was
married to a young Muslim girl,
Zulaikha Begum. [8] Azad compiled
many treatises interpreting the
Qur'an , the Hadith, and the
principles of Fiqh and Kalam.[7]
Revolutionary and journalist
Azad developed political views
considered radical for most
Muslims of the time and became a
full-fledged Indian nationalist. [7]
He fiercely criticised the British for
racial discrimination and ignoring
the needs of common people across
India. He also criticised Muslim
politicians for focusing on
communal issues before the
national interest and rejected the All
India Muslim League 's communal
separatism. Azad developed
curiosity and interest in the pan-
Islamic doctrines of Jamal al-Din
al-Afghani and visited Afghanistan,
Iraq, Egypt , Syria and Turkey. But
his views changed considerably
when he met revolutionary activists
in Iraq and was influenced by their
fervent anti-imperialism and
nationalism.[7] Against common
Muslim opinion of the time, Azad
opposed the partition of Bengal in
1905 and became increasingly
active in revolutionary activities, to
which he was introduced by the
prominent Hindu revolutionaries Sri
Aurobindo and Shyam Sundar
Chakravarty. Azad initially evoked
surprise from other revolutionaries,
but Azad won their praise and
confidence by working secretly to
organise revolutionaries activities
and meetings in Bengal, Bihar and
Bombay (now called Mumbai). [7]
Azad's education had been shaped
for him to become a cleric, but his
rebellious nature and affinity for
politics turned him towards
journalism. He established an Urdu
weekly newspaper in 1912 called
Al-Hilal and openly attacked British
policies while exploring the
challenges facing common people.
Espousing the ideals of Indian
nationalism, Azad's publications
were aimed at encouraging young
Muslims into fighting for
independence and Hindu-Muslim
unity. [7] His work helped improve
the relationship between Hindus
and Muslims in Bengal , which had
been soured by the controversy
surrounding the partition of Bengal
and the issue of separate communal
electorates.
With the onset of World War I, the
British stiffened censorship and
restrictions on political activity.
Azad's Al-Hilal was consequently
banned in 1914 under the Press Act.
Azad started a new journal, the Al-
Balagh, which increased its active
support for nationalist causes and
communal unity. In this period Azad
also became active in his support
for the Khilafat agitation to protect
the position of the Sultan of Ottoman
Turkey , who was the caliph for
Muslims worldwide. The Sultan had
sided against the British in the war
and the continuity of his rule came
under serious threat, causing
distress amongst Muslim
conservatives. Azad saw an
opportunity to energise Indian
Muslims and achieve major
political and social reform through
the struggle. With his popularity
increasing across India, the
government outlawed Azad's
second publication under the
Defence of India Regulations Act and
arrested him. The governments of
the Bombay Presidency, United
Provinces, Punjab and Delhi
prohibited his entry into the
provinces and Azad was moved to a
jail in Ranchi , where he was
incarcerated until 1 January 1920.
[13]
Non-co-operation
Main article: Non-Cooperation
Movement
Upon his release, Azad returned to a
political atmosphere charged with
sentiments of outrage and rebellion
against British rule. The Indian
public had been angered by the
passage of the Rowlatt Acts in 1919,
which severely restricted civil
liberties and individual rights.
Consequently, thousands of political
activists had been arrested and
many publications banned. The
killing of unarmed civilians at
Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar on 13
April 1919 had provoked intense
outrage all over India, alienating
most Indians, including long-time
British supporters from the
authorities. The Khilafat struggle
had also peaked with the defeat of
the Ottoman Empire in World War I
and the raging Turkish War of
Independence, which had made the
caliphate's position precarious.
India's main political party, the
Indian National Congress came
under the leadership of Mahatma
Gandhi, who had aroused
excitement all over India when he
led the farmers of Champaran and
Kheda in a successful revolt against
British authorities in 1918. Gandhi
organised the people of the region
and pioneered the art of Satyagraha
—combining mass civil
disobedience with complete non-
violence and self-reliance.
Taking charge of the Congress,
Gandhi also reached out to support
the Khilafat struggle, helping to
bridge Hindu-Muslim political
divides. Azad and the Ali brothers
warmly welcomed Congress support
and began working together on a
programme of non-co-operation by
asking all Indians to boycott
British-run schools, colleges,
courts, public services, the civil
service, police and military. Non-
violence and Hindu-Muslim unity
were universally emphasised, while
the boycott of foreign goods,
especially clothes were organised.
Azad joined the Congress and was
also elected president of the All
India Khilafat Committee . Although
Azad and other leaders were soon
arrested, the movement drew out
millions of people in peaceful
processions, strikes and protests.
This period marked a
transformation in Azad's own life.
Along with fellow Khilafat leaders
Dr. Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari , Hakim
Ajmal Khan and others, Azad grew
personally close to Gandhi and his
philosophy. The three men founded
the Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi as
an institution of higher education
managed entirely by Indians without
any British support or control. Both
Azad and Gandhi shared a deep
passion for religion and Azad
developed a close friendship with
him. He adopted the Prophet
Muhammad's ideas by living
simply, rejecting material
possessions and pleasures. He
began to spin his own clothes using
khadi on the charkha, and began
frequently living and participating in
the ashrams organised by
Gandhi. [citation needed ] Becoming
deeply committed to ahinsa (non-
violence) himself, Azad grew close
to fellow nationalists like
Jawaharlal Nehru, Chittaranjan Das
and Subhas Chandra Bose .[13] He
strongly criticised the continuing
suspicion of the Congress amongst
the Muslim intellectuals from the
Aligarh Muslim University and the
Muslim League.
The rebellion began a sudden
decline when with rising incidences
of violence; a nationalist mob killed
22 policemen in Chauri Chaura in
1922. Fearing degeneration into
violence, Gandhi asked Indians to
suspend the revolt and undertook a
five-day fast to repent and
encourage others to stop the
rebellion. Although the movement
stopped all over India, several
Congress leaders and activists
were disillusioned with Gandhi. The
following year, the caliphate was
overthrown by Mustafa Kemal
Atatürk and the Ali brothers grew
distant and critical of Gandhi and
the Congress. Azad's close friend
Chittaranjan Das co-founded the
Swaraj Party , breaking from
Gandhi's leadership. Despite the
circumstances, Azad remained
firmly committed to Gandhi's ideals
and leadership. In 1923, he became
the youngest man to be elected
Congress president. Azad led efforts
to organise the Flag Satyagraha in
Nagpur . Azad served as president of
the 1924 Unity Conference in Delhi,
using his position to work to re-
unite the Swarajists and the Khilafat
leaders under the common banner of
the Congress. In the years following
the movement, Azad travelled
across India, working extensively to
promote Gandhi's vision, education
and social reform.
Congress leader
