Tufail Ahmad
| Tufail Ahmad | |
|---|---|
| Born | West Champaran, Bihar, India |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | journalist, commentator |
Tufail Ahmad is a British journalist and political commentator of Indian origin. He has been the Director of the South Asia Studies Project at the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) in Washington, D.C.. As per his latest writings, he is described as a Contributing Editor at Firstpost and as Executive Director of the Open Source Institute, New Delhi.[1][2]
Life and career
Ahmad was born in the West Champaran district in Bihar, India. He is currently a British citizen.[3]
Ahmad has a B.A. (Hons) in Sociology from the Aligarh Muslim University. He further studied Social Systems at Jawaharlal Nehru University and War Studies at the King's College London, receiving M.A. degrees in both. He also holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi.[3][4]
He worked in Delhi for C-voter, Press Trust of India and Inomy Media. Subsequently, he worked as an editor with the BBC Urdu Service in London for approximately eight years, focusing on the coverage of Pakistan. [3][4]
He is currently the Director of the 'South Asia Studies Project' at the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) in Washington, D.C. His research is focused on jihadist movements in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh as well as the counter-terrorism policies of the countries. He also carries out research on issues of cultural and religious freedom in these countries.[4]
Works
Ahmad co-edited The Internet Economy of India published by Inomy Media, in 2001.
He writes research reports at MEMRI,[5] regular columns in The New Indian Express[6] and occasional articles in the OPEN magazine.[7] He has liberal views, opposing jihadism and fundamentalism, and encourages Indian Muslims to participate in Indian polity and society.[8] He warns India and Pakistan of their jihadist threats.[9][10] He is concerned about the Liberal-Left intellectuals aligning with the Islamist forces owing to their supposed zeal in opposing the West.[3]
With the rise of the ISIS, Ahmad has been tracking the reactions in the Muslim community and highlighting the calls for reform from within the community.[11][12]
In early 2016, Ahmad's book Jihadist Threat To India -- The Case For Islamic Reformation By An Indian Muslim was published in India.[13] Speaking at the launch of his book in New Delhi on March 31, 2016, Ahmad accused the Indian state of handing over its responsibility of teaching Muslim children to madrassas (Islamic seminaries) which he described as counter-liberty movements; and while stressing the need for Islamic Reformation, he called for teaching mathematics, economics and physics to Muslim girls from Grade 1 through Grade 12.[14] In a review of his book, American Indologist Dr. David Frawley described the author in these words: "Tufail Ahmad is a powerful and provocative voice for reform in Islamic society and in India in particular. He is also a key expert on national security issues in India, which is under siege by jihad."[15]
Advocacy of Reform
On 30 November 2016, Tufail Ahmad unveiled a 12-point document, in which he proposed a "blueprint" for a Uniform Civil Code for India.[16] The document was named "the Universal Bill of Rights for the Indian Citizen" and was written by Ahmad in collaboration with two others, Satya Prakash and Siddharth Singh.[17][18][19]
Criticism
Tufail Ahmad's employer, MEMRI, is alleged to be a pro-Israeli organisation that selectively presents Muslim sources to show them in a negative light.[20] Zafarul Islam Khan, the editor of The Milli Gazette, accused Ahmad of promoting Islamophobic views and likened him to Taslima Nasreen and Tarek Fateh.[21] Tufail Ahmad has accused his critics Zafarul Islam and Shahid Siddiqui of promoting jihadi mindset among Indian Muslims through Urdu media.[22]
References
- ↑ Ahmad, Tufail (22 August 2016). "The Radicalisation Series: Analysing the threat to Muslim youths in India". Firstpost. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
- ↑ India's ex-Muslims: Shedding traditional Islam for science
- 1 2 3 4 "Tufail Ahmad - Journalist and commentator on South Asian affairs". tufailahmad.com. Retrieved 2015-03-12.
- 1 2 3 "About us". Middle East Media Research Institute. Retrieved 2015-03-12.
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad research reports at the Middle East Media Research Institute
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad columns in the New Indian Express
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad columns in the OPEN Magazine
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad, Modi Rule: an Opportunity for Muslims, OPEN Magazine, 13 October 2014.
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad, The Rise of Ideological Jihadists, OPEN Magazine, 21 August 2014
- ↑ Tufail Ahmad, The Next Decade of Jihadism in Pakistan, Hudson Institute, 20 June 2013
- ↑ Ahmad, Tufail. Muslim Liberals Vs ISIS, New Indian Express, 3 March 2015.
- ↑ Bob Taylor, Muslim Voices demand Islamic reform, Communities Digital News, 8 March 2015.
- ↑ "infolimner™". infolimner.com. Retrieved 2016-05-11.
- ↑ "Vimarsha on 'Jihadist Threat to India – The Case for Islamic Reformation by an Indian Muslim'". March 31, 2016.
- ↑ Frawley, David (April 30, 2016). "Reforms in Islam can help destroy the cancer of jihad".
- ↑ Ahmad, Tufail. "A Blueprint for the Uniform Civil Code". Twitter.com. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ↑ Ahmad, Tufail. "Statement on the Draft Uniform Civil Code for the Indian Citizen". IndiaFacts.org. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ↑ "Muslim intellectual Tufail Ahmad proposes a revolutionary Uniform Civil Code". Zee News. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ↑ "Muslim intellectual proposes a revolutionary Uniform Civil Code". The Statesman. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ↑ Brian Whitaker, Selective Memri, The Guardian, 12 August 2002.
- ↑ Zafarul Islam Khan, In response to Tufail Ahmad: Is this the beginning of assault on India's Urdu Press?, Daily O, 16 July 2016.
- ↑ Ahmad, Tufail (July 25, 2016). "In Response to Zafarul Islam: Islamist Editors are Indeed Radicalising Indian Muslims".