By K. N. Wasif
Hyderabad: The need for a common platform bringing together alumni of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Osmania University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Jamia Hamdard and Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU), along with renewed efforts to strengthen Muslim educational institutions and bring school dropouts back into education, emerged as key themes at an international seminar organised by the Media Plus Foundation on the occasion of Sir Syed Day.
Titled “Aligarh Muslim University: Past, Present and Future”, the seminar was held at the Media Plus Auditorium, Gunfoundry, Hyderabad. It brought together educationists, scholars and Aligarh alumni from India and overseas, with several participants joining online from different countries.
The session was presided over by Dr Mohammed Abdul Qadeer, Chairman of the Shaheen Group of Education. Those on the dais included Dr Sajid Ali, Director of Iqra Mission School; scholar Dr Islamuddin Mujahid; Dr Syed Fazil Hussain Parvez, Chief Editor of Gawah Urdu Weekly; Dr Syed Khaled Shahbaaz; and Dr Mohammed Abdul Rasheed Junaid. Dr Parvez welcomed the gathering, while seminar coordinator Dr Shahbaaz outlined the objectives of the programme and introduced the panellists. The proceedings began with a recitation from the Holy Quran by Mohammed Shujaat Ali, followed by the Aligarh University anthem. Mujahid Mohiuddin Nair welcomed the guests.
Bringing students back to education
Dr Sajid Ali said Sir Syed Ahmad Khan’s legacy placed a responsibility on Aligarh alumni to contribute to the survival and progress of the institution and to the wider educational advancement of the community. Presenting data on Muslim access to higher education across India, he drew attention to the particularly unsatisfactory educational indicators in north India, while noting that the situation in the south was comparatively better.
He urged the community to focus on children who had never entered a classroom as well as those who had dropped out midway, and called for stronger community-based educational institutions. Without sustained intervention, he warned, Muslims risked falling further behind educationally. He also stressed the importance of preparing students for the age of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.
Dr Mohammed Abdul Qadeer, who received the Sir Syed Ahmad Khan Excellence Award, said that Aligarh alumni now occupied important positions across the world, but the pressing challenge was the declining quality of some community institutions. He attributed this in part to a lack of unity and mutual trust among their managements.
Referring to the historic Mahmud Gawan Madrasa in Bidar, established nearly six centuries ago, Dr Qadeer recalled that it had attracted students from around 25 countries and offered a high standard of religious and secular learning. He said the weakening and closure of historic centres of learning had cost the community dearly, and argued that excellence in education must once again become a priority.
Sir Syed’s response to a moment of despair
Dr Islamuddin Mujahid placed Sir Syed’s work in the context of the upheaval that followed the Revolt of 1857. At a time when the Muslim community was facing political decline, social uncertainty and deep pessimism, Sir Syed recognised education as the means to overcome backwardness and rebuild confidence, he said.
Dr Mujahid observed that resources alone do not guarantee the progress of a community; vision, courage and collective effort do. Sir Syed sought to move Muslims beyond a narrow, traditional understanding of education and encouraged the study of modern disciplines, while placing equal emphasis on character and personal development.
Recalling Sir Syed’s emphasis on building a community rather than merely producing degree-holders, Dr Mujahid said the movement that began with the establishment of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental educational institution eventually led to the founding of Aligarh Muslim University in 1920. AMU, he said, was not merely an educational institution but a major movement that generated collective educational consciousness among Indian Muslims.
He regretted that, despite the decades since Independence, the community had not created enough institutions with the reach and transformative influence of Aligarh. Connecting younger generations to education, he said, remained the most effective response to continuing educational deprivation.
Voices from India and abroad
The seminar also heard from Aligarh alumni and scholars joining through Zoom. Participants included Dr Qutbuddin Abu Shuja from the United States; Shahid Siddiqui, editor of Nai Duniya, from Delhi; Dr Nadeem Tareen from Riyadh; Mohammed Athar from New Zealand; Professor Akbar Masood, Vice-Chancellor of Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Jammu and Kashmir; Professor Akhtarul Wasey, former Vice-Chancellor; Dr Syed Hasan Kamal from the United States; Dr Kamal, a NASA scientist; Mir Wilayat Ali, Registrar of Khwaja Bandanawaz University, Kalaburagi; and Dr Mohsin Raza Alig from Aligarh.
Dr Qutbuddin Abu Shuja congratulated the organisers, expressing hope that the initiative would deepen the bond between Aligarh and Osmania alumni and help spread Sir Syed’s message. He said AMU could continue to serve as a catalyst for the educational renaissance of Indian Muslims.
Mohammed Athar, a former student speaking from New Zealand, said distance had not weakened the shared purpose of Aligarh alumni. The best tribute to Sir Syed, he said, would be to practise the values and wisdom he advocated, and to resolve differences through dialogue.
Professor Akhtarul Wasey recalled the beginnings of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental School in 1875 and its evolution into a college in 1877, before it became a university in 1920. He highlighted Sir Syed’s advocacy of modern education, scientific thinking and a dynamic understanding of culture. Recalling Sir Syed’s effort to bring religious thought and scientific inquiry into conversation, he said the relationship between God’s word and the natural world should be approached with intellectual confidence.
Dr Nadeem Tareen said Sir Syed’s mission had never been confined to establishing a university at Aligarh. Its larger purpose was to make education accessible to ordinary people, particularly Muslims, while contributing to the advancement of society as a whole. He welcomed the opportunity for alumni and friends in Hyderabad to renew that commitment.
Syed Hasan Kamal, a 1960 graduate of AMU, spoke about the growth of Aligarh alumni associations in the United States and in several other cities. He called for making alumni networks more global and purposeful, and referred to initiatives to promote STEM education, institutional partnerships and support for students preparing for doctoral studies. He urged alumni to help schools achieve STEM certification and contribute to educational projects that could make a practical difference.
Professor Akbar Masood described AMU’s breadth of academic opportunities, with a wide range of subjects and departments, as one of its major strengths. But, he said, the university’s distinctiveness lay beyond its academic offerings. Sir Syed’s vision combined philosophy, science and faith, while the university’s residential culture helped shape students’ conduct, social relationships and sense of fraternity.
He said generations of Aligarh graduates had carried a recognisable culture of courtesy, mutual respect and community feeling across the world. Universities must adapt to technological change, he added, but should do so without abandoning the values and traditions that give education its human purpose.
Mir Wilayat Ali, Registrar of Khwaja Bandanawaz University, Kalaburagi, said the educational mission associated with Sir Syed continued through institutions and individuals working to bring quality education to underserved communities. He cited the contributions of the Khwaja Education Society, Khwaja Bandanawaz University and the Shaheen Group, among others, and said education remained central to social mobility, dignity and collective progress. He congratulated Media Plus Foundation, particularly Dr Fazil Hussain Parvez, for organising a timely initiative and conveyed the good wishes of the university’s Chancellor and members.
Hyderabad’s unusual bond with Aligarh
The seminar also provided an occasion to reflect on Hyderabad’s long and emotional association with Aligarh Muslim University. The city’s relationship with the institution has been shaped by the contributions of the sixth and seventh Nizams, Mir Mahbub Ali Khan and Mir Osman Ali Khan; the Salar Jung family; the heir apparent Azam Jah; Princess Durru Shehvar; and two Hyderabad-born AMU Vice-Chancellors, Professor A. M. Khusro and Hashim Ali Akhtar.
For generations, students from Hyderabad have taken pride in belonging to both the Osmania and Aligarh traditions. Hyderabad also witnessed campaigns in support of the restoration of AMU’s minority character.
One particularly unusual link between the city and the university is the long-standing association of Mohammed Cap Mart with Aligarh’s traditional dress culture. For nearly a century, Hyderabadis travelling to Aligarh—whether members of the erstwhile royal family, vice-chancellors, faculty members, students or their friends—have often carried with them the Rumi topi procured from Mohammed Cap Mart.
Mohammed Ilyas Bukhari, Managing Partner of Mohammed Cap Mart, said the association had continued from the time of his father, Haji Mohammed Yaqub Qadri. The shop not only supplied these caps to visitors from Hyderabad but also sourced them from Aligarh and north India. Former students now living around the world continue to return to the shop for sherwanis and Rumi caps, particularly when attending annual Sir Syed Day gatherings. The relationship, built on memory, identity and affection, remains a distinctive thread connecting Hyderabad with Aligarh.
A call for collective action
Among those who joined the concluding interaction were former Aligarh students and other distinguished participants, including Dr Najmuddin, Dr Moinuddin Ahmar, Dr Anwar Khan, Dr Nazimuddin, Syed Jafar Hussain, Editor of Sada-e-Hussaini, Dr Mohammed Hilal Azmi and senior journalist K. N. Wasif.
The seminar concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr Mohammed Abdul Rasheed Junaid, Joint Editor of Gawah. Prayers were offered for the departed, including Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, Dr Wazir Rasul Khan, K. M. Arifuddin and Dr Fakhruddin Mohammed.
The discussions underlined that the most meaningful tribute to Sir Syed would be a renewed commitment to educational access, institutional excellence, cooperation among alumni and the preparation of young people for a rapidly changing world. The proposal for a common forum connecting alumni of Aligarh, Osmania, Jamia, Hamdard and MANUU offered one possible starting point for turning that commitment into sustained action.
