Ghulam Ali Okarvi

Shaikh ul Quran Ghulam Ali Okarvi () (11 June 1919 CE or 20 Ramadan 1337 AH – 16 May 2000 CE or 11 Safar 1421 AH) was an Islamic scholar, orator, jurist, muhadis, mufasir, and linguist from Pakistan. He taught the Qur'an and Ahadeeth for more than 50 years. Many of his students because scholars called "Sheikh-ul-Islaam wal Muslimeen." The Ulama of Egypt, Syria, and Iraq sought permission from him to teach Hadeeth and Tafseer. Naqeebul Ashraaf, Saiyyid Peer Tahir Allauddin Al-Qadri Al-Gillani used to refer to him with the title of "Ustaazu Asaatiza tina" (Teacher of our teachers).
Life.
Early life and family.
Ghulam Ali was born in the small village of Babanian near Lalamusa, Gujrat in Pakistan. His ancestors were founders of the village. Around five to six generations before his birth, they arrived from Hazratbal Shrine, Srinagar and named it Babanian. After settlement, they distributed their land to other people to strengthen their village.
His primary education was at Govt. Model Primary School in 'Umar Chak (village attach to Babanian)' and middle-level education at Middle School Jora Karnana in 'Jora Karnana (a village near Babanian)'.
He started his early Persian language education at Umer Chak.
Higher education.
For higher education, he formally studied in Jamia Arabia Karimia Hanfia (branch of Anjuman Hizbul Ahnaf, Lahore) in Jalandhar, India and Hizb ul Ahnaf, Lahore.
Furthermore, he was greatly influenced by different scholars of his era, including Naeem u deen Muradabadi, Ahmad Yaar khan Naeemi, Abul Hasanat Qadri, Syed Muhammad Asharfi, etc.
Death.
Shaikh ul Quran died on Tuesday 11 June 2000 CE (11 Safar 1421h) at the age of 80 in Jinnah Hospital, Lahore. He was buried on land he owned in Jamia Hanfia Dar ul Uloom Ashraf ul Madaris at GT Road Okara.
Legacy.
He took bait on the Hand of Abul Barakat Syed Ahmad Qadri from Hizb ul Ahnaf, Lahore who gave him the title 'Shaikh ul Quran' later recognized by others.
In 1957 he was the first Pakistani Scholar who started Dora e Quran in the country.
Many famous scholars of his era were greatly influenced by him and his teachings.
In 1964, he, along with other scholars, declared that to assign the office of the Head of the State to a female is "un-Islamic and Haram," and "destructive" for the country and the nation.
Uras celebrations on his mausoleum.
Every year, devotees celebrate his Uras. The last two-day annual Urs (anniversary) was in Okara on Tuesday 1 November 2017. According to Maulana Pir Khalid Zahid Ashrafi, the Urs celebrations were observed under the guidance of shrine caretaker Pir Mufti Fazlur Rehman Okarvi. He said that renowned religious scholars including Kaukab Noorani Okarvi, Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah, Gulzaman Attari, Imran Asi attended the Urs. Devotees from across the country and also the foreign countries attended the occasion. The Urs was concluded on 1 November after Isha prayers.
Politics.
He took part in the Pakistan Movement on the platform of All India Sunni Conference.
In 1948, he was one of the founding members of Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan. Later on, he continued his struggle for the implementation of Islamic Constitution in the country. After on he actively participated in the Movements of Khatme Nabuwat and Nizam e Mustafa in the Country.
In 1969, after the Ayub Khan (President of Pakistan) era, he gathered JUP splits in Lahore and united them to take part in the election. His party was the third largest party in West Pakistan during the 1970 election. He remained its Punjab Chapter's President in 1970s. In 1977, he was also the Punjab President of Pakistan National Alliance.