Delhi: After 14 years of split, the two warring factions of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind led by Mahmood and Arshad Madani are likely to merge for the cause of fighting for the overall cause of Muslims in the country. Jamiat, which split into two factions, is one of the biggest bodies of Islamic scholars and had played a significant role in the National Freedom Movement.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Maulana Arshad Madani, President of one of the two faction of Jamiat, said "Both our factions are unified. There is nothing surprising that we are on the way to merge. We had a meeting on the reconciliation process a few days back but such procedures take time. So I cannot give you a specific deadline but I can assure you that our unification or merger is on its track and will be completed soon."
The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind organisation has millions of workers, supporters and office bearers but its split 14 years back created a vacuum. On the future status of office bearers, Arshad Madani responded, "We all are one. We don't have separate units or a separate office. Our spilt earlier was not for the sake of 'seats' but it was rather ideological. We are hoping the process will be completed in next few months."
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He further said the reshuffle within Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind happens after every 3 years. The last time the reshuffle happened was 18 months ago. So after 18 months, there would be a new reshuffle. Till then, we will not remove any worker at any level because these are committed Jamiat workers who have been doing good work for years and decades."
"Earlier when there was similar kind of an attempt to merge our factions, that didn't succeed but this time, both the sides are on equal foot and by Allah's grace, this unification process this time would be completed without any blockade", added Arshad Madani.
What Mahmood Madani faction has to say?
Talking to this reporter, a senior official of Mahmood Madani faction on the condition of anonymity, said "Talks are going on for the past 5 years. And we are hoping that there would be a positive unification. As part of the unification process, some members of the Mahmood Madani faction including the president himself travelled to Deoband."
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On the question of the status of office bearers after the unification, the official responded "It's a very long procedure. Though both Arshad and Mahamood Madani work under the same roof and have a same office in New Delhi both the factions have their own and separate Working Committees (WCs). Apart from this, both the factions have their own separate supporters and members." If the reunification happens before the next reshuffle, questions will arise on the status of office bearers of the two factions, he added.
So it is likely that after the unification, one faction would emerge as the top contender while the other faction's office holders would have to resign. "This is a very sensitive matter. So a lot of discussions are going on, on this very issue but nothing significant has been achieved on this", the official said.
