Dr Sir Ziauddin Ahmad: An inspiring vision

Sir Ziauddin Ahmad, Vice Chancellor and rector of Aligarh Muslim University, was an eminent mathematician, a great educationist and above all, a great humanitarian person of the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent. He was a great benefactor of the Muslims and left an indelible mark on our education system and we owe him a great debt.
Born in 1877 at Meerut into a renowned family of Zuberis of India who claim their lineage originates from Hazrat Zubair bin Awwam, Sir Ziauddin showed exceptional signs of intelligence and diligence even when he was quite young. He obtained his MA in 1897 and D.Sc in 1901. His highly impressive academic career won him a scholarship and he joined Cambridge University in 1901 where he took his mathematical tripos and became a Wrangler.
He obtained his Ph.D from Gottingen University, Germany, and visited Paris, Bologna and Cairo before returning to Aligarh in 1906 with all possible honours and joining his alma mater as professor of mathematics. Sir Ziauddin rendered yeoman service to the Muslims of the subcontinent.
He worked for the uplift of the Muslim community and devoted his life to the eradication of ignorance and illiteracy from among Muslims who otherwise would have lagged behind Hindus by not less than a century. Sir Ziauddin can certainly be reckoned as next only to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in spreading education among Muslims and as such they owe him their profound gratitude.
In fact, there are few Muslims in the history of Indo-Pakistan subcontinent, who have played a more prominent role in the development of Muslim affairs than Sir Ziauddin. He was the most faithful successor to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan after whose death he carried on the task of educating his people in the teeth of opposition from the fanatics at that time.
The entire Muslim nation owes a great debt of gratitude to him for his valuable services in the fulfilment of aspirations of the Muslims of the subcontinent. When he was proceeding to England to receive the coveted Sir Isaac Newton Scholarship, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan wanted him to sign a five-year bond to serve the university after his return.
He signed the bond on a paper and told Sir Syed that he had been asked to sign a bond for five years' service while he had already decided to serve the institution for his life. Sir Syed tore the bond and tears rolled down his face in appreciation of Sir Ziauddin's noble gesture.
He was a genius in mathematics and a pioneer in discharging his professional duties. Sir Ziauddin took active interest in all movements connected with the promotion of social, education and political progress of the Muslims of the subcontinent. He was one of the original members of the All-India Muslim League founded at Dacca (Dhaka) on December 31, 1906 and he remained its member till his death. On the desire of Quaid-e-Azam, Sir Ziauddin accepted the office of secretary of the newly organised Muslim League party in the central assembly in 1938.
He was elected Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University in 1935 and was re-elected in 1941, a post he held till 1947. Maulana Mohammad Ali and his associates Hakim Ajmal Khan, Dr Ansari, Maulana Shaukat Ali, Maulana Azad and others attacked Aligarh Muslim University during the Khilafat and Non-co-operation Movement and urged Dr Ziauddin Ahmad to close the university and the teaching of English.
It was the foresight of Dr Ziauddin Ahmad that rescued the Muslim University from destruction. Dr Ziauddin Ahmad was at the helm of affairs of the university when the Pakistan Movement was in full swing and he made Aligarh as the "Arsenal of the Pakistan Movement" as termed by Quaid-e-Azam.
Sir Ziauddin Ahmad was a devout Muslim and lived a much simple life. He had a paternal affection for the teachers and students. He was a top mathematician, a topmost educationist, a very capable administrator, an expert on matters of railways and budget and a veteran parliamentarian. In the Central Assembly of undivided India, he always fought for the rights of Muslims and always supported the national interests. In the affairs of the Reserve Bank of India, he achieved the goal for which the Congress fought and failed.
Sir Ziauddin was a giant among the Muslims of the subcontinent. Sir Syed was the pioneer in the movement of the emergence of the Muslim nation, but it was entirely due to the sagacity and foresight of Dr Ziauddin Ahmad who made Aligarh the cradle of Muslim education that it was possible for them to attain the separate homeland of Pakistan in 1947 under the guidance of the Quaid-e-Azam. Aligarh and the Muslims of Indo-Pakistan subcontinent owe such a great debt to the services of Sir Syed Ahmad and Sir Ziauddin that it is essential to perpetuate the memory of these great heroes, who can rightly be claimed as those national workers who have contributed in most abundant measure for the establishment of Pakistan.
Dr Sir Ziauddin Ahmad's unique single handed contributions to the cause of Muslims of the subcontinent, in fact, surpasses the combined contributions of all the leaders combined. In 1917, Sir Ziauddin Ahmad was appointed member of the Calcutta University Commission of which Sir Michael Sadler was President. He played an active role in the formulation of its recommendations. Throughout his life, he served the cause of the Muslims of the subcontinent with great devotion and zeal.
Sir Ziauddin Ahmad's attachment to Aligarh surpassed other loyalties so much so that Aligarh and Ziauddin became synonymous. This descendant of Hazrat Zubair can undoubtedly be called one of the top benefactors of the Muslims of the subcontinent. It has been rightly said that if Sir Syed Ahmad Khan founded the Aligarh College, Sir Ziauddin helped it emerge as the most significant university for the subcontinent's Muslims.
He was a close associate of H. H. Aga Khan III and H. H. Syedna Tahir Safiuddin, who were also great patrons of the Aligarh Muslim University. The legacy of Dr Ziauddin Ahmad is being carried on by his daughter Dr Aijaz Fatima, her husband Dr Tajammul Hussain and their children.
His grandson Dr Asim Hussain, Chancellor, Ziauddin University and Chairman, Dr Ziauddin Hospital is very devotedly serving the cause of humanity and medical education in Pakistan. Dr Sir Ziauddin Ahmad could rightly be titled as "Nabbaz-e-Millat" as he was the pulse reader of the Muslim nation. He made Aligarh stronger and stronger and is rightly termed as the builder of Aligarh, while Sir Syed was its founder.
Sir Ziauddin died in London on December 23, 1947, and was buried in Aligarh beside Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in the Aligarh Muslim University Mosque premises, thus fulfilling the pledge, he made to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan to serve Aligarh all his life.
(Dr Sir Ziauddin Ahmad was the real maternal uncle of Mohiuddin Ahmad, father of this writer, who is one of the founding fathers of Sir Ziauddin Ahmad Memorial Society (Pakistan) and presently the Chairman of Dr Ziauddin Ahmad Memorial Society's overseas chapter in the US)