In a significant development, Darul Uloom Deoband, Asia’s leading Islamic seminary, has asked its members to renounce their links with Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind (JUH), India’s grand Muslim organisation, which of late has been in news for infighting between two of its leading figures — Arshad Madani and Mahmood Madani.This decision, which is expected to set the future course of relationship between the two major Muslim bodies in the country, was taken at the executive council of the seminary held on June 15. Besides the decision of one man-one post, the Darul Uloom executive council unanimously approved a proposal that if any of the seminary executive council members is also a member of executive committee of either faction of JUH, he will have to resign immediately. It has also asked students and teachers of Darul Uloom to refrain from getting involved in the JUH dispute.Following the decision, a number of key Muslim figures, including former JUH president Maulana Arshad Madani, who had held positions in both the bodies had to opt out from the Deoband. He was the secretary of education at Darul Uloom. The executive council of Darul Uloom has also asked Qari Mohammad Usman who has been nominated president of JUH by its executive council and who is also deputy rector of the seminary, to choose one of the two. It is understood that Deoband has taken the decision to distance itself from the ongoing dispute in JUH on the ground that it is earning the seminary bad reputation. “The decision was taken to protect the image of the world-famous seminary,” Maulana Qasmi of the seminary has said. Moreover, the Deoband also prefers to steer clear of Jamiat’s political inclinations. JUH leader Mahmood Madani is a Rajya Sabha MP from Ajit Singh’s RLD and Arshad Madani is also said to be planning to launch a party before the next general election. JUH leader in West Bengal Siddiqullah Chowdhury has already launched a political party which had succeeded in thwarting the cause of the Left Front in the recent panchayat elections. The immediate reason behind the Deoband’s decision is said to be the conflict that took place in the premises of the seminary on the night of May 31, the day when Darul Uloom rector Maulana Marghubur Rahman attended the massive anti-terrorism conference in New Delhi’s Ramlila Ground. As the conference was organised by JUH leader and MP Maulana Mahmood Madani, the Arshad Madani camp had made a big issue of it with even students taking sides.
