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Preying Upon the Gullible Muslims
By Omar Khalidi
Naive Muslims are inveigled into dubious and spurious financial investments with Arabic sounding names, Islamic or interest-free tag, only to be duped and dehusked of their life’s savings.
As a devoted believer in tassawuf, I arrived at Dargah Nizamuddin in May 2003. No sooner did we reach there than a bearded fellow clad in impeccable white clothes approached me with a register, asking me to sign in. I did so without a thought, little realizing that my act would open a dark story. As I moved away from the man after signing in, he asked me, “what about chanda?” “I have come to beg, not to donate,” I replied. The annoyed man left in a huff. This brings up the question, who is, or who should be accountable for money collected from the Muslim public in the name of Islam? Every so often, the English press reports about the money grab by various people in the name of religion, including Muslims. Rarely does the Urdu press talk about it, either because they are afraid of the adverse consequences likely to be visited upon by the culprits or because some of the editors/owners may themselves have indulged in similar practices in their trade. Press reports are often forgotten, given the short public memory. Muslim individuals and organizations have collected money from the public since the last hundred years. In the late 19th century, a clerk in Aligarh swallowed a chunk of money collected for education, much to Sayyid Ahmad Khan’s grief. Large amounts were collected for Hijaz Railway, Turkish victims of the World War I, and Khilafat movement (1918-24) and for the victims of riots by the Muslim League in various parts of India in the late 1940s. Historians know that a full audit of these funds never happened. The post independence story is not different. The encounter I had at the Nizamuddin is not confined to just the sacred spaces, but common at other sites and many levels.
To begin with, India’s taxpayer funds the budget of the National Commission for Minorities, minorities finance corporations at the central and state levels; National Council for the Promotion of Urdu Language, and Urdu academies at the state level. Unscrupulous men diverted funds not their own, for personal gain as can be seen from the following table showing scam-ridden government agencies.
Government Agencies for Urdu & Minorities
I. A. Name of the Institution
B. Amount of Assets, Funds involved
C. What happened
D. When happened or when reported
E. Source of Information
A. I. AP State Minorities Finance Corporation
II. Rs. 3 crore
III. Misappropriation of funds by management; questionable expenditure on establishment charges, & a documentary. Debtors defaulted on loans
IV. 30 September 2003; 13 June 2004; October 26, 2005
V. The Hindu 30 September 2003; 26 October 2005 & Munsif, Hyderabad, 14 June 2004, both internet editions.
B. I. National Council for the Promotion of Urdu Language
II. Liquid & other assets worth Rs. 1.8 crores, Rs. 1.13,000 in cash; documents for fixed deposits of Rs. 15 lakhs, bank balance of Rs. 10 lakhs, LIC policy of 10 lakhs, 2 flats, and a plot of land in Delhi, 1 flat in Faridabad
III. Misappropriation of funds for personal gain; NCPUL Chairman arrested on 30 September 2005 and continues to be in custody till last heard.
IV. August 1, 2005; September 2005; October 2005.
V. Milli Gazette 1-15 August 2005, p. 17; Milli Gazette 16-31 October 2005, p. 20; & Milli Gazette 29 October 2005, electronic edition
C. I. Karnataka Minorities Development Corporation, (KSMDC) Bangalore
II. Rs. 75000
III. KSMDC chief arrested by police for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs. 75,000
IV. 22 March 2005
V. The Hindu, 23 March 2005, electronic edition
D. I. U.P. Urdu Academy
II. Rs. Several lakhs
III. Money misappropriated by Academy staff with forged signatures
IV. February 2005
V. Milli Gazette 01-15 Feburary 2005, Internet edition.
Misappropriation of funds by Muslims in “secular” or “this worldly” setting such as a government department like the Minorities Commission or the Urdu Council is highly deplorable, but the crime becomes many fold higher when faith is used as tool for deception. Unlike the common criminal preying upon the ordinarily gullible person, the individuals and organizations doing so in the name of Islam (or any other religion), taint not only their own name when caught, but also the faith itself, at least in the perception of those outside that faith. Criminal actions such as the misappropriation of funds disillusion the youth and removes them from the faith.
Religious Endowments, Organizations, Religious Heads
II. A. Name of the Institution
B. Estimated income, Donations
C. What happened
D. When happened or when reported
E. Source of Information
A. I. Dargah Ajmer Sharif, Ajmer, Rajasthan
II. 1.5 crores annually according to Dargah Committee (DC), Rs. 50 crores according to others.
III. DC claims 90% income, donations spent on pilgrims or establishment; others dispute claim, want accounts made public
IV. 21 November 2004
V. The Times of India, internet ed. 21 Nov 2004
B. I. Dargah Hazrat Nizamuddin, Delhi
II. Rs. 2000-3000 daily; around Rs. 5000 on Thursdays, Fridays; significantly more according to others
III. Delhi Waqf Board Survey Commissioner alleged distribution of funds among Pirzadas; Delhi High Court directed Commissioner to monitor income, expenditure.
IV. 07 April 2004
V. The Tribune, Chandigarh, 08 April 2004, Internet edition
C. I. Waqf Board
II. Rupees Hundreds of crores, varies from state to state
III. Illegal occupation by Muslims and others; mismanagement, embezzlement
IV. Since 18th century to the present
V. Well-documented in books and media
D. I. Qazi Mir Muhammad Qadir Ali of Qazat Shariat Panah Baldah, Hyderabad
II. Total income of the Qazat unknown
III. The Qazi embezzled Rs. 50 lakh from Qazat funds
IV. 24 March 1999
V. Deccan Chronicle 24 March 1999 Internet edition
E. I. Daudi Bohra chief, the self-styled Al-Dai al-Mutlaq, Mumbai
II. Crores of Rupees
III. Collection of money under the categories of Zakat, Sila-Fitra, Sabil, Huququnnafs, Nikah, Salam-i Sayyidina, Nazr al-Maqam, & Khums
IV. Since at least the 18th century to the present, 2005
V. Jonah Blank, Mullahs on the Mainframe, Chicago, 2001.
Muslim-run educational organizations
Since the 1980s, there has been a mushroom growth of the professional colleges (computer sciences, engineering, management, medicine, pharmacy) selling seats in the name of donations or capitation fee. Muslim institutions are not exempt from this vice, and indulge in it like anyone else. Smart, but financially challenged Muslim students are thus unable to pursue professional education, as they are unable to pay the high cost. The easy availability of large amount of funds has created opportunities to the unscrupulous as can been seen in the documentation noted below.
III. A. Name of the Institution
B. Amount of funds involved
C. What happened
D. When happened or when reported
E. Source of Information
A. I. Maulana Azad College, Aurangabad, Maharashtra
II. Not known
III. Donation & capitation fee case against former minister Rafiq Zakaria (d. 2005); & his partner Mazhar Mohiuddin of Aurangabad; anticipatory bail denied to both.
IV. 31 August 1995
V. India Today 31 August 1995,p. 24.
B. I. State Bank of Hyderabad
II. Rs.96.99 lakhs
III. Case filed by DSP Lakshma Reddy, for money belonging to Darussalam Educational Trust
IV. December 1993; January 1994
V. Deccan Chronicle, as reproduced in The Minaret, New York, 16 January 1994, p.8.
Banks Run by Muslims
Interest in various forms, shapes, whether obvious or oblivious is often a part of any banking operation, cooperative societies, mutual funds and so forth. Muslims are searching for viable alternatives to interest-based banks. Some of the banks noted below were not even started on any Islamic principle, but merely showed an Islamic hue because of the name in Urdu, large, if not exclusive nature of Muslim membership, clients and senior management. Hence when financial irregularities took place in the following banks, public confidence was shaken. Depositors lost money, Muslims were discredited.
IV. A. Name of the Institution
B. Estimated income, Donations
C. What happened
D. When happened or when reported
E. Source of Information
A. I. Awami Mercantile Cooperative Bank, Mumbai
II. Rs. 5 crores
III. Three officials of the Awami Bank arrested by police for allegedly siphoning off Rs. 5 crores belonging to development corporations
IV. May 1998, reported on 12 September 1998
V. Express India, 12 September; 23 April 1999, & 19 December 1999, all on Internet edition
B. I. Baitunnasr, Mumbai
II. Not known
III. Depositors, shareholders lost money
IV. 2001?
V. Informants in Mumbai
C. I. Charminar Urban Cooperative Bank, Hyderabad with branches in AP, Mumbai.
II. Bank established in 1985 & its turnover touched Rs. 8000 crores with a deposit base of Rs. 475 crores, in February 2002; depositors mostly Muslim
III. Bank went bankrupt; chairman Sayyid Alamdar Husayn known as Sajjad Agha committed suicide on 25 February 2002 in Hyderabad.
IV. 25 February 2002
V. Deccan Chronicle 26 February 2002; Internet edition.
D. I. Al-Ameen Islamic Financial Investment Corporation, Bangalore
II. Rs. 18 crore
III. Corporation promised interest free business; but duped the investors.
IV. 2003 – No news till date
Fly by Night Operators: Business Ventures with Islamic Hues and Colours
This last category of Muslims involved in questionable financial dealings is most unfortunate. Many such questionable business operations use Arabic definite article ‘al’ in the name of the business to give an “Islamic” colour to the venture. Gullible Muslims in India have a soft corner for any word sounding Arabic, not realising that Arabic is a lot more than the language of the wahi. Arabic, like all other languages is/can be used by anyone for the most profane purpose. Financially inexperienced Muslims, especially those with petro-dollars hoping to get a healthy monthly return for large investments are the biggest victims of the individuals seeking quick money. Companies are floated every day, some flourish, others fail, but some are meant to deceive from day one. Examples of the deception can be seen from the chain of “incidents” involving the following.
V. A. Name of the Institution
B. Estimated Funds
C. What happened
D. When happened or when reported
E. Source of Information
A. I. Almeezan Leathers, Chennai
II. Rs. 275 lakhs
III. Company failed. Bad investment decision by management resulting in shareholders’ loss
IV. 1982-86
V. Dr Omar Afzal, Cornell University, personal communication 15 November 2005; Maqbool Ahmad Siraj, journalist, Bangalore
B. I. Alfalah Company, run by Sayyid Mustafa Qadiri, aka “Saeed Bhai,” known as Andhra Ratan, Hyderabad.
II. Rs. 15 crore
III. About 8,000 Investors duped
IV. 5 February 1999
V. Saudi Gazette, Jeddah, 05 February 1999; Deccan Chronicle, 26 February 1999.
Internet edition; Saudi Gazette, Jeddah, 28 February 1999, p. 9.
C. I. Alfahad Investments Ltd. Jamia Nagar, New Delhi and offices in Bhopal, Indore
II. About Rs. 50 crores
III. Investment company duped & ran away with funds
IV. 31 August 2001
V. Sify News 21 August 2001, internet edition.
D. I. Awad Group, Malakpet, Hyderabad
II. About Rs. 7 crore
III. Investors duped
IV. 7 April 1999
V. Siasat daily Hyderabad, 8 April 1999, internet edition
E. I. Foranzan & AsanZubi Industries, run by Taaruj Ahmad of Vitthalwadi, Hyderabad
II. Not clear
III. Investors duped
IV. 3 May 1999
V. Siasat daily Hyderabad, 3 May 1999, Internet edition; Deccan Chronicle 28 February 2002;
F. I. “New” Alfalah/Albarr Finance House, based in Mumbai, UP towns, New Delhi. “Old” Alfalah, based in New Delhi
II. Not clear
III. Investors duped
IV. May 2004
V. Millli Gazette 1-15 May 004, on the Internet
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