Maulana Samiul Haq profile

LAHORE: Maulana Samiul Haq was a noted scholar and serving as the principal of Darul Uloom Haqqania, Akora Khattak, since 1988.

The madrasa is a renowned seminary affiliated with Deobandi school of thought, founded by illustrated father of Maulana Samiul Haq, and a noted worker of Pakistan Movement, Maulana Abdul Haq Haqqani.

Samiul Haq was also regarded as the ‘Father of Taliban’ because he remained one of the teachers of majority of the central leaders of Taliban government (1996–2001), who had studied at Darul Uloom Haqqania during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. He enjoyed a close relationship with the Taliban government, especially with Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar. In the aftermath of US-led Nato attack on Afghanistan, he was also contacted by various governments of Pakistan and the US to use his influence for brokering a peace agreement with Nato forces and Taliban to end latter’s resistance.

Born on Dec 18, 1937, Maulana Samiul Haq led his faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) since late 1980’s after the death of Maulana Abdullah Darkhwasti, who had dissociated himself from Maulana Fazlur Rehman to form his own faction. He remained a senator for two terms, 1985 to 1991 and 1991 to 1997. An ardent supporter of Taliban government in Afghanistan and advocate for the US-led Nato forces’ withdrawal, Samiul Haq had also been heading an alliance of Islamist parties, set up in the aftermath of US attack on Afghanistan called Defence of Pakistan Council (DPC).

Samiul Haq was also among founding member of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, the most successful religio-political alliance in country’s history, but he dissociated his party from the MMA before 2008 elections and also did not join the alliance after it was restored after ten-year dormancy in 2018.

He was also the patron of a jihadi group Harkatul Mujahideen, which fought against the USSR occupant forces in Afghanistan and in Indian-held Kashmir, but was banned by the US as a terrorist organisation after 9/11.

He formed Muttahida Deeni Mahaz (United Religious Front), an alliance of relatively small religio-political parties, to participate in general election 2013.

He had always been a devout supporter of observing fundamental Islamic codes of segregation of sexes in educational institutions and offices, veil for women in public, abolition of foreign-secular curriculum and bringing about Islamic revolution to enforce Sharia laws.