Mahmood Ahmed Ghazi

Mahmood Ahmad Ghazi (13 September 1950 – 26 September 2010) was a Pakistani jurist and scholar of Islamic Studies, shariah and fiqh. He was a professor at the International Islamic University, Islamabad, judge at the Federal Shariat Court and Federal Minister for Religious Affairs in Pakistan. He completed his dars-e-nizami at the age of 16 and later obtained a PhD in Islamic Studies from Punjab University. He was fluent in Urdu, English, Arabic, Persian, Turkish and French. He authored numerous works in Urdu and English, and translated Persian poetry Payam-e-Mashriq of Muhammad Iqbal into Arabic.

Birth and education
Ghazi was born on 13 September 1950 in Kandhla, Uttar Pradesh. His father Muhammad Ahmad Farooqui was a disciple of Muhammad Zakariyya Kandhlawi whilst his mother was niece of Izharul Hasan Kandhlawi. Ghazi started memorizing al-Qur’ân from the madrasa of Mawlâna Siddĭq Ahmad, during stay with his (maternal) grandmother, and completed the Hifz (memorization) after migration to Karachi, Pakistan in 1954 from the madrasah of Qâri Waqa-Allah Panipati, at the age of eight years. He started Dars-i Nizami from Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia, Karachi and completed the syllabus from Madrasa Ta‘lim al- Qur’ân, Rawalpindi in 1966. He got the degrees of B.A. Hons. (Arabic) in 1966; B.A. Hons. (Persian) in 1968; M.A. (Arabic) in 1976; and PhD in 1998 from the University of the Punjab, Lahore.

== Official Responsibilities ==


 * 1) President, International Islamic University Islamabad (2004 to 2006)
 * 2) Vice President, International Islamic University Islamabad (November 1994 to 2004)
 * 3) Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, Government of Pakistan (August 2000 to August 2002)
 * 4) Member, National Security Council, Government of Pakistan (1999 to 2000)
 * 5) Temporary Judge, Shariah Appellate Bench, Supreme Court of Pakistan (1988 to 1999)
 * 6) Member, Islamic Ideology Council (1990 to 1993, 1997 to 2000)
 * 7) Director General, Shariah Academy, International Islamic University Islamabad (1991 to 2000)
 * 8) Director General, Da'wah Academy, International Islamic University Islamabad (1988 to 1994)
 * 9) Khatib of Faisal Mosque / Director of Islamic Center, Faisal Mosque, Islamabad (1987 to 1994)
 * 10) Editor of "Al-Darasaat Al-Islamiyyah" (Islamic Studies Quarterly Journal in Urdu), Islamic Research Institute, Islamabad (1981 to 1987, 1991 to 1993)
 * 11) Editor of "Fikr-o-Nazar" (Urdu Quarterly Journal), Islamic Research Institute, Islamabad (1984 to 1987)
 * 12) Professor, Associate Dean, College of Islamic Knowledge, Qatar Foundation, Doha
 * 13) Chairman, Shariah Board, State Bank of Pakistan
 * 14) Chairman, Shariah Advisory Cell, International Islamic University Islamabad
 * 15) Chairman, Shariah Advisory Committee, Takaful Pakistan, Karachi (2005 to 2008)

Academic Affiliation / Membership

 * 1) Member, Working Committee of Al-Tajamu Al-Alami Lil Uloom Al-Muslimin, Mecca, Saudi Arabia
 * 2) Member, Al-Ittihad Al-Alami Lil Ulama Al-Muslimin (under the patronage of Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi), Cairo, Egypt
 * 3) Member, Arab Academy, Damascus, Syria
 * 4) Member, Syndicate of Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan (2006 to 2008)
 * 5) Member, Executive Council of Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad (2004 to 2007)
 * 6) Member, Board of Advanced Studies and Research of Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad (1991 to 1994)

Books
Ghazi wrote about 30 books and more than 100 articles. His Muhaazraat Series have also been published as separate books. Muhaazraat Series are a collection of about 68 lectures, Ghazi had given at Idara al-Huda on different topics like Quran, Hadith, Fiqh, Seerat and Shariat. His other notable books include:

English books
Notable English works of Ghazi are:
 * The Hijrah: Its Philosophy and Message for the Modern Man
 * Qadianism
 * The Life and Work of the Prophet of Islam (The book has been translated from the marvelous French work of Dr. Muhammad Hamidullah).
 * Renaissance and Revivalism in Muslim India ― 1707-1867
 * The Shorter book on Muslim International Law (Translation of al-Siyar al-Saghir of Muhammad al-Shaybani)
 * An Analytical Study of the Sannusiyyah Movement of North Africa
 * Islamic Renaissance in South Asia (1707-1867)―The Role of Shah Waliullah and His Successors
 * State and Legislation in Islam

Death
On 25/08/2010, Dr. Ghazi suddenly felt discomfort and was admitted to the CCU of PIMS. Early in the morning of 26/08/2010, he passed away due to heart failure. After the Zuhr prayer, he is buried in the H-10 graveyard in Islamabad. Hundreds of his students, scholars, lawyers, and citizens of Islamabad/Rawalpindi participated in his Namaz-e-Janaza.