Muslim educational Movement during the British rule in the sub-continent

Urdu-Hindi Controversy 
During the last days of the Muslim rule, Urdu emerged as the most common language of the northwestern provinces of India. It was declared the official language, and all official records were written in this language. In 1867, some prominent Hindus started a movement in Banaras in which they demanded the replacement of Urdu with Hindi, and the Persian script with the Deva Nagri script, as the court language in the northwestern provinces. The reason for opposing Urdu was that the language was written in Persian script, which was similar to the Arabic script, and Arabic was the language of the Quran, the Holy Book of the Muslims. The movement grew quickly and within a few months spread throughout the Hindu population of the northwestern provinces of India. The headquarters of this movement were in Allahabad. 
This situation provoked the Muslims to come out in order to protect the importance of the Urdu language. The opposition by the Hindus towards the Urdu language made it clear to the Muslims of the region that Hindus were not ready to tolerate the culture and traditions of the Muslims. 
The Urdu-Hindi controversy had a great effect on the life of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. Before this event he had been a great advocate of Hindu-Muslim unity and was of the opinion that the "two nations are like two eyes of the beautiful bride, India". But this movement completely altered his point of view. He put forward the Two-Nation Theory, predicting that the differences between the two groups would increase with the passage of time and the two communities would not join together in anything wholeheartedly. 

Aligarh Movement [1858-98] 
The War of Independence 1857 ended in disaster for the Muslims. The British chose to believe that the Muslims were responsible for the anti-British uprising; therefore they made them the subject of ruthless punishments and merciless vengeance. The British had always looked upon the Muslims as their adversaries because they had ousted them from power. With the rebellion of 1857, this feeling was intensified and every attempt was made to ruin and suppress the Muslims forever. Their efforts resulted in the liquidation of the Mughal rule and the Sub-continent came directly under the British crown. 
After dislodging the Muslim rulers from the throne, the new rulers, the British, implemented a new educational policy with drastic changes. The policy banned Arabic, Persian and religious education in schools and made English not only the medium of instruction but also the official language in 1835. This spawned a negative attitude amongst the Muslims towards everything modern and western, and a disinclination to make use of the opportunities available under the new regime. This tendency, had it continued for long, would have proven disastrous for the Muslim community. 
Seeing this atmosphere of despair and despondency, Sir Syed launched his attempts to revive the spirit of progress within the Muslim community of India. He was convinced that the Muslims in their attempt to regenerate themselves, had failed to realize the fact that mankind had entered a very important phase of its existence, i.e., an era of science and learning. He knew that the realization of the very fact was the source of progress and prosperity for the British. Therefore, modern education became the pivot of his movement for regeneration of the Indian Muslims. He tried to transform the Muslim outlook from a medieval one to a modern one. 
Sir Syed's first and foremost objective was to acquaint the British with the Indian mind; his next goal was to open the minds of his countrymen to European literature, science and technology. 
Therefore, in order to attain these goals, Sir Syed launched the Aligarh Movement of which Aligarh was the center. He had two immediate objectives in mind: to remove the state of misunderstanding and tension between the Muslims and the new British government, and to induce them to go after the opportunities available under the new regime without deviating in any way from the fundamentals of their faith. 
Keeping education and social reform as the two planks of his program, he launched the Aligarh Movement with the following objectives: 
1. To create an atmosphere of mutual understanding between the British government and the Muslims. 
2. To persuade Muslims to learn English education. 
3. To persuade Muslims to abstain from politics of agitation. 
4. To produce an intellectual class from amongst the Muslim community. 
Fortunately, Syed Ahmad Khan was able to attract into his orbit a number of sincere friends who shared his views and helped him. Among them were well-known figures like Nawab Mohsin-ul-Mulk, Nawab Viqar-ul-Mulk, Hali, Shibli, Maulvi Nazir Ahmad, Chiragh Ali, Mohammad Hayat, and Zakaullah. Above all, his gifted son Syed Mahmud, a renowned scholar, jurist and educationist, was a great source of help to him. 
Syed Ahmad also succeeded in enlisting the services of a number of distinguished English professors like Bech, Morison, Raleigh and Arnold who gave their best in building up the Aligarh College into a first-rate institution. 
A brief chronology of Syed Ahmad's efforts is given below: 
1859: Built Gulshan School in Muradabad. 
1863: Set up Victoria School in Ghazipur. 
1864: Set up the Scientific Society in Aligarh. This society was involved in the translation of English works into the native language. 
1866: Aligarh Institute Gazette. This imparted information on history; ancient and modern science of agriculture, natural and physical sciences and advanced mathematics. 
1870: Committee Striving for the Educational Progress of Muslims. 
1875: Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental School (M. A. O.), Aligarh, setup on the pattern of English public schools. Later raised to the level of college in 1877 and university in 1913. 
1886: Muhammadan Educational Conference. This conference met every year to take stock of the educational problems of the Muslims and to persuade them to get modern education and abstain from politics. It later became the political mouthpiece of the Indian Muslims and was the forerunner of the Muslim League. 
Besides his prominent role in the educational uplift of the Muslims, Syed Ahmad Khan's writings played an important role in popularizing the ideals for which the Aligarh stood. His essay on "The Causes of Indian Revolt in 1858", and other writings such as "Loyal Muhammadans of India", Tabyin-ul-Kalam and "A Series of Essays on the Life of Muhammad and Subjects Subsidiary Therein" helped to create cordial relations between the British Government and the Indian Muslims. They also helped to remove misunderstandings about Islam and Christianity. 
It was from this platform that Syed Ahmad Khan strongly advised the Muslims against joining the Hindu dominated Congress. He was in favor of reserved seats for Muslims and also promoted the idea that Hindus and Muslims are two distinct nations. This idea led to the Two-Nation Theory. 
Syed Ahmad Khan's Aligarh Movement played a significant role in bringing about an intellectual revolution among the Indian Muslims. Thus it succeeded in achieving its major objectives, i.e. educational progress and social reform. His efforts earned Sir Syed the title "Prophet of Education".
Deoband Movement [1866-1947] 
Apart from the Aligarh Movement, there were many other forces working in the Sub-continent that contributed to national consolidation. These were in the form of institutions that grew up within the country. These institutions occasionally held views in opposition to the Aligarh leadership, but they all worked towards a common goal; national awakening and integrity. 
Most important of these institutions was the seminary at Deoband. The original idea of establishing a madrasa for teaching religious subjects was that of a practicing sufi and a reputed saint, Haji Muhammad Abid of Deoband. He became the honorary patron and manager of the seminary, and when ample funds became available, Maulana Muhammad Yaqub, a leading educationist, was appointed as the headmaster. On April 14, 1866, the madrasa started functioning in a small mosque. 
The madrasa at Deoband followed the Madrasa-i-Rahimiyah in its emphasis on Hadith, but it also incorporated many features of the new educational institutions established by the British, e.g., division of students in regular classes, attendance registers and written examinations. By 1931, 900 students were enrolled in the madrasa, including 43 foreign students. 
Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi, who joined the madrasa few years after its establishment, was very active during the war of 1857, and for a period of time even established his own government in the area. On the suppression of the revolt by the British, Maulana Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, one of the Maulana's companions, had to spend several months in jail, while their spiritual teacher Haji Imdad Ullah had to seek refuge in Mecca. 
Maulana Mahmud-ul-Hasan, who remained head of the institution for 23 years, encouraged contacts between Aligarh and Deoband. In 1920, the Maulana established the Jami'ah Milliyah for students who had discontinued studies at Aligarh during the Non-Cooperation Movement. The Jami'ah incorporated many features of Deoband. 
Another personality associated with Deoband was Maulana Ubaid Ullah Sindhi. He figured in the "Raishmi Roomal Tehrik" launched by Maulana Mahmud-ul-Hasan and left India for Afghanistan during the World War I to organize actions against the British. He was appointed as Home Minister in the provisional government of India formed at Kabul. However, after the failure of the scheme, he proceeded to Moscow and then from Turkey to Mecca. 
Deoband has invariably remained as the central institution catering to requirements of religious education of the Muslim community all over Sub-continent. To a certain extent, it also played the role of a unifying force for them, since apart from the opposition of the Deobandi teachers and students, so many ulema from the same institution supported Quaid-i-Azam, and took active part in the Pakistan Movement under the guidance of Maulana Shabbir Ahmad Usmani. 

Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam [1884-1947] 
For a thousand years, Lahore had been a great cultural and intellectual center of the Muslims. Under the Mughals, Lahore boasted of rapid progress in the domains of education and learning. But towards the end of the Muslim rule in India, the Sikhs devastated large areas of Punjab. The annexation of Punjab brought peace to the region, but failed to create conditions conducive to the growth of intellectual and academic activities. The War of Independence of 1857 added to the woes and worries of the Indian Muslims. The Muslims refused to acquire modern education. 
Towards the close of 19th century, the impact of Sir Syed's Aligarh Movement was felt all over the Sub-continent and Punjab was no exception. In March 1884, Maulana Qazi Hamid-ud-Din invited his pupil Maulvi Ghulam Ullah Qasuri and a number of other public-spirited persons to a small gathering and set up the Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam. 
On September 22, 1884, the establishment of the Anjuman was formally announced and Qazi Hamid-ud-Din was elected its first president. The Anjuman decided to work towards the following aims and objectives: 
1. To arrange for the religious and general education of Muslim boys and girls. 
2. To propagate and defend Islam against the Christian missionaries and Hindu revivalists. 
3. To counteract the propaganda against Islam through speeches and publications. 
A team of selfless workers associated themselves to the cause of the Anjuman. Among them were Nawab Sir Fateh Ali Khan Qazilbash, Mian Sir Muhammad Shafi, Sir Muhammad Iqbal, Sir Abdul Qadir, Dr. Khalifah Shuja-ud-Din and a host of others. 
The Anjuman established educational institutions in arts, sciences and technology for men and women as well as orphanages for helpless Muslims, to which widows' homes were later added. The Moplah orphans, the victims of Bihar and Quetta earthquakes, and later the destitute children and widows of the 1947 holocaust, found shelter at these orphanages. 
In 1885, the Risala-i-Anjuman Himayat-i-Islam made its appearance, publishing the principles of Islam. In 1892, the Anjuman established the Islamia College at Lahore. This was later elevated to degree level in 1903. The contribution of the college to the general Muslim awakening has been great. Its students played an important role in the Muslim national movement in Punjab. In 1939, the Anjuman established the Islamia College for Girls. 
Of these services in the field of education, the Anjuman had the greatest impact on Muslim society and politics. In 1928, the Anjuman expanded its press and published standard works on religious and literary themes, and modern subjects like geography, physical sciences and economics. A landmark in the history of the Anjuman publication was the production of an absolutely correct text of the Holy Quran.
Nadva-tul-'Ulema of Lucknow [1894-1947]
This institution came into existence in 1894 as a result of the efforts of some religious minded government officials, ulema, and sufis, who wished to bring the ulema together and remove sectarian differences. The main work of the organization was the establishment of a Dar-ul-Uloom at Lucknow. For some time Shibli Nomani, Syed's co-worker for many years, was associated with the institution. Under his influence it gained importance, but in 1914 he was forced to resign. 
Shibli Nomani wrote extensively on Islam, highlighting those periods and personalities that offered guidance, and provided inspiration to the Muslims, enabling them to take their proper place in the world. His writings include the series "Heroes of Islam". The first book of this series was "Al-Mamoon", a biography of Mamoon-ur-Rasheed. Other books in the series included the biographies of Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Ghazali and Maulana Roomi. 
Through his writings, Shibli tried to refute western allegations against Islam and Muslims. His Tarajjum gave a fairly complete account of the steps taken by the Muslims in the heyday of their glory, and incorporated into Arabic, the fruits of the learning of Greece, Iran, and India etc. He took great pains to pick out and train promising youth to carry on his work and spread his message. His basic purpose remained to train and educate Muslim youth so that they could unite and lead their nation out of despondency. 
A magnificent building was constructed for the Dar-ul-Uloom with a grant from the State of Bhawalpur. The tradition of training in literary craftsmanship and style of modern Arabic was inherited by the institution. The Dar-ul-Musannifin, or "Academy of Authors", at Azamgarh, manned by the former students of the Nadva, is a byproduct of the institution.