Obituary
Br.
Syed Abdul Qadir, a lifelong advocate of a united Muslim
ummah, died of cancer May 28 in Austin, Texas. He was 93.
Inna Lillahi wa Inna Ilayhi Raji'oon.
Br. Abdul Qadir was born in 1913 in Hyderabad, India. He
earned a gold medal and degree in Civil Engineering around
1934, and then worked for 12 years overseeing construction
of roads, bridges, and dams in the erstwhile State of Hyderabad.
During this period, Br. Abdul Qadir was first exposed to
the writings of the famous Muslim scholar Maulana Sayyid
Abul A'la Maududi. Correspondence between the two soon ensued
and Br. Abdul Qadir joined Maulana Maudoodi's Jamaat Islami
movement, in its early years. Soon after, he resigned his
government job, started his own Islamic book publishing
and sales business which he managed for a few years. Then
Br. Abdul Qadir left his young family in Hyderabad and moved
to Rampur, India, became General Manager of Markazi Maktaba
Islami (publishing wing of Jamaat Islami). He served as
interim Ameer of Jamaat Islami, India in the late-50's.
In the late 1950's, Br. Abdul Qadir returned to Hyderabad,
where he opened the city's first Jamaat Islami elementary
school that catered to students from impoverished families.
Abdul Qadir further demonstrated his commitment to serving
the less fortunate through the establishment of an interest-free
micro-credit loan program based on the Grameen model, which
he administered with the help of his family and close friends.
He served as Vice Principal of Bahadur Khan Technical College.
He also served as lecturer of engineering at the Jawahar
Lal Nehru Polytechnic Institute.
Br. Abdul Qadir continued his community uplifting work later
in life as well. With the intention of honoring the integrity
of Muslim women, he led an initiative to open India's first
and only Muslim Maternity Hospital in Hyderabad in the early
1980's. Even after immigrating to the United States in 1991
to be near his children, Br. Abdul Qadir contributed towards
charitable causes in time and resources and assisted both
acquaintances and strangers in need. The last project that
he continued to work on until two weeks before his demise
was an easy to understand Talkhees (an abridged translation/commentary)
of the Qur’an.
His wife, Basheer-un-Nisa, of Hyderabad, India; eight children,
26 grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren survive
him. As Islam teaches us, we all belong to Allah and to
Him we all will surely return.
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Umer Hayat, left, and his attorney Johnny Griffin III smile
as they talk to reporters after agreeing to a plea agreement
with federal prosecutors in Sacramento, Calif., Wednesday,
May 31, 2006. Hayat, 48, pleaded guilty of lying to customs
agents about more than $28,000 he and family members were
trying to carry on a flight out of the country three years
ago. In exchange, prosecutors dropped charges that he lied
to the FBI and will serve no more jail time after spending
nearly a year behind bars. His son, Hamid Hayat, 23, faces
at least 30 years in prison when he is sentenced July 14
for supporting terrorism by attending an al-Qaida training
camp in Pakistan in 2003 and lying to the FBI.
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