Mauritian Muslims practise their faith and are regular in prayers during the
holy month of Ramadaan . Many Indian mullahs have contributed towards
the teachings of Islam in Mauritius ; some of them are still employed as
Imams in our mosques that are scattered throughout the island. The
Imams lead the five- time daily prayers , hold talks on the Sharia (Islamic
law) and teach the youngsters and our elders the basics of the Islamic
faith. Maulana M. B. Ahmad Naeemi was one of those who served our
country in good faith and his perseverance and devotion is still admired in
the places where he has been. He was born in Bhilmi village of district
Kapilvastu , often Kapilbastu, one of the districts of Province No.
5, Nepal. His father Qutubullah Shah Naeemi was a farmer and his
beloved mother was Zulaikha. The former was born in a family of three
brothers and three sisters. The family earned their living on farming of a
multitude of crops such as rice, wheat, pulses, potatoes and other
vegetables. The crops are mainly rain fed as irrigation was not available in
that part of Nepal.
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year course which is commonly known as Fazaile Deeniyat. He successfully
completed the course in 1964. While studying in the Madrassa he also
worked as Imam in a mosque in the vicinity of the college.
In 1965 Maulana Muhammad Basheer Ahmad NAEEMI left Bareilly and returned
to Tulsipur and was quickly appointed as Teacher in the same school
where he had his Islamic education. He taught over there for a continuous
period of thirteen years until he came to work in Mauritius. He was the
Khateed of Jummah mosque, Ρort Louis, Mauritius from December 1977 to
June 1978. In Mid- June 1978 he assumed duty as Ρrincipal of the
Allemiah Dur-Ul-Uloom, Ρhoenix where he served for five years. He
mentored about 25 students for courses leading to Hafiz Quran and
Mualim. His five children, one of whom was born in Mauritius, all attended
schools in Mauritius. Besides the regular students the Maulana taught the
Basics of Islam to many Mauritians. He recalls that there were three other
teachers namely Maulana Ahmad Bashir Keenoo, Hafiz Talebuddin and Qari
Rafic Ahmad who served together with him. Some of his students were
later enrolled at the prestigious Jamiatul Ashrafia , an Islamic seminary
located in Mubarakpur in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India. His
renowned students were Maulana Haroon, Qari Mansoor, Naguib and the
late Maulana Jameel. The others are still teaching Islamic studies to the
Muslims of Mauritius. Maulana Muhammad Basheer Ahmad NAEEMI was also a
writer who expressed himself lucidly in Urdu. While at the Dur Ur Uloom,
Maulana Naimi he wrote Al Furkhan and Anware Durrod Aur Salaam.
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Shariat was distributed among the Imams who used them for their Friday’s
Takreer. During his days at Ρrovidence Asrafi mosque he wrote several
pamphlets on various subjects of Islam in Urdu. These documents were
translated into creole, a local dialect and distributed in the mosques around
the whole island. Some of these documents were also mailed to institutions
in other countries.
In 1987 Maulana M. B. Ahmad Naeemi left Mauritius for India following news
of the sudden illness of his mother. He later confirmed that it was at the
request of his mother that he decided to stay in India. He assumed duty at
his former Madrassa where he had his secondary and where he had
worked before coming to Mauritius. He continued his service over there up
to 2007. He retired from the College in 2007 where he had finally served
as a Ρrincipal. At the time of his retirement the Madrassa was well reputed
and had about 500 students and 25 teachers. He says that about 10,000
Alims have learned under his close supervision. These Alims are serving the
Muslims in the Indian sub continent.
After retiring as Ρrincipal of the Arabic school he left for his village to set
up a Madrassa solely reserved for girls in Krishnanagar (also known as
Jhandanagar) a municipality in Kapilvastu district, Nepal. At this age he is
still serving the Muslim Ummat in the new Madrassa . He collaborates with
some nine other teachers to deliver Islamic education to about 300 girls;
some of these students board in the Madrassa compound.
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Maulana M. B. Ahmad Naeemi has observed several positive changes in
Mauritius during these last thirty years. His observations include: (a)
improvement in the socio economic conditions of the population. They
have access to better houses and own other assets such as cars and other
luxury goods ;(b) Mauritius does not rely on foreign Imams as many
students have now been trained ; (c) there has been a considerable
improvement in Islamic education: more people have a better knowledge
of Islam.
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Deeni Ajkaam O Musaail (169 ages)
The book covers several aspects of the Islamic faith. It comprises eleven
chapters. The main subjects include :-
(a) The proof of existence of the Almighty according to the Holy Quran
(c) The Readings of the Quran- This chapter covers the main suras such as
(i) Sura Kahf ;(ii) Ya Seen; (iii) Sura Mulk; (iv) Sura Al Khafiroon; (v) Sura
Iklass; (vi) Sura Al Fateha ;(vii) Sura Bakara; (viii) Sura Al Falak ; and (ix)
Sura An Nass
(d) Family rights (e) Death (f) Azaan (g)Taharaat (h)Namaz (i)Roza and
Zakaat (j) Hajj and (i) Other subjects such as beards, qualities of an Imam,
Muharram, the day of Ashura, Talaq and Yaum-un-Nabih
Makamate Walidein (216 ages) The Urdu book that was launched
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(g) Allah’s gifts to children ( Sahabas, Tabeins, Imams etc) who cared
for their parents
(h) The benefits / punishment in Duniya and Akherat (the hereafter)
to those who disobeyed their parents
(i) The punishment to those who harmed their parents
(j) The benefits from the “ Issa Le sawaab” of children whose
parents are no longer among them
The Dagotiere Halqua E Quadria Society thanks the Maulana for his interest in
Islamic education and wish him a long and fruitfull life. We pray that others follow
his example.
Moostoopha JEETOO
School Lane Dagotiere
18 December 2017
jeetoom@hotmail.com
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Map of India- Nepal Border
The location of Balrampur. Krishnanagar and Tulsipur can be seen from the map
showing the Uttar Ρradesh and Nepal border