An anathema for the system:   In a recently held entry test for the Punjab medical colleges, even a student scoring 93 per cent marks in F.Sc failed to make it to any government-run institution offering instruction in medicine. The situation is alarming to

Cleaning the Punjab of Takfiri Deobandi militancy – by Tahir Kamran:   Subsequent to the Lahore blast, law enforcement agencies have launched an operation of sorts, resulting in a crackdown on several places of the Punjab and several ‘miscreants’ are reported to have been nabbed. Thus the exceptionalism which was

Tipu Sultan the great – Tahir Kamran: A popular exhibit in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum is a musical instrument made in the shape of a tiger devouring a European settler. It signifies the mindset of the important individual from South India who commissioned it and

Celebrating death not life – Tahir Kamran:   “IS celebrates death, not life” was a statement from a young Jordanian colleague who works on Middle Eastern politics. Despite being visibly distressed and shaken over the gruesome killing of the Jordanian pilot, Moaz al-Kasasbeh, who was burnt

Islam and open societies – Tahir Kamran:   The shooting at Charlie Hebdo in Paris has acted as a wake-up call for several European nations, Belgium and the United Kingdom being the most conspicuous of them. Their concern seems all the more visible primarily because Western

Deobanci cleric Mufti Naeem’s Takfiri fatwa for Federal Minister Pervez Rashid: Historicising the Deobandi influence in Pakistan – by Tahir Kamran:   Information Minister’s Pervaiz Rashid’s speech at a national conference organised by the Pakistan Academy of Letters in Karachi on May 3 where he described the religious seminaries as “centres of ignorance and illiteracy” has incurred considerable wrath of

Simplistic puritans: Deobandi Tablighi Jamaat of Pakistan – by Tahir Kamran:   Despite having a conspicuous representation in the Pakistani socio-cultural landscape, Tablighi Jamaat has thus far eluded a scholarly gaze. Information available either in print or on the internet is sparse and brief. That is surprising because with the

Islamic State of Salafis and Deobandis: Celebrating death not life – Tahir Kamran (The News):   “IS celebrates death, not life” was a statement from a young Jordanian colleague who works on Middle Eastern politics. Despite being visibly distressed and shaken over the gruesome killing of the Jordanian pilot, Moaz al-Kasasbeh, who was burnt

Is apolitical Islam possible? – Tahir Kamran: When Prof Joya Chatterji posed the question, ‘is apolitical Islam possible’ I was flummoxed simply because it is a rare nevertheless extremely relevant query. The advent of IS in Levant, which flaunts a peculiar brand of Islam and Tehreek-i-Taliban

Loud speaker: An intrusive presence – Tahir Kamran: Once seen as a technological invention of considerable utility, the loudspeaker (mukabir-e-sawt) is now looked upon by some as a social bane and a source of nuisance. Affixed to the tall minarets of mosques, the loudspeaker has, over the

Ubaidullah Sindhi’s Pan-Islamism – Tahir Kamran: Renowned historian Aziz Ahmed credits pan-Islamist Ubaidullah Sindhi as “the only political thinker of any considerable calibre to come directly in contact with Russian communism at an early stage”. He epitomised the plural character that characterised the Ghadar Movement,

Deobandi-inspired Pakistani youths fighting in Chechnya, Iraq and Syria – by Tahir Kamran (Cambridge University): More thoughts on Takfir — Tahir Kamran The News, June 29, 2014 My last column ‘Takfir and terrorism’ evoked some responses which were brusque in articulation but well-meaning in intent and purpose. Some pointed out the column’s ‘inadequacies’ with candour.

Takfir and terrorism – by Tahir Kamran:   Like khalafah, umma, jihad and shahadat, takfir has attained a wide currency in modern day Muslim discourse. For analysts, takfir has a peculiar specificity, especially when referring to modern day proponents of revivalist Islam. Takfir denotes excommunication or

Pakhtun ethos for Ghamidi – by Tahir Kamran: The author is the Iqbal Fellow at the University of Cambridge as professor in the Centre of South Asian Studies Javed Ahmad Ghamidi’s attribution of the slaughter of people to the Pakhtun tribal ethos has created a stir in