Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai ( ps, مفتي شهاب‌الدین پوپلزی) is an Islamic cleric,

Imam Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...

Khatib In Islam, a khatib, khateeb or hatib ( ar, خطيب ''khaṭīb'') is a person who delivers the sermon (''khuṭbah'') (literally "narration"), during the Friday prayer and Eid prayers. The ''khateeb'' is usually the prayer leader ('' imam''), ...

and head of the regional moon-sighting committee at the historic

Qasim Ali Khan Mosque The Qasim Ali Khan Mosque (Urdu, ); ( hnd, قاسم علی خان مسیت) is a 17th-century mosque in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Located in Qissa Khwani Bazaar, Mohallah Baqir Shah. The mosque was built during Emperor Aurangzeb's r ...

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. The committee, whose existence predates the creation of Pakistan, traditionally declares the sighting of the

Ramadan , type = islam , longtype = Religious , image = Ramadan montage.jpg , caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...

and

Shawwal Shawwal ( ar, شَوَّال, ') is the tenth month of the lunar based Islamic calendar. ''Shawwāl'' stems from the verb ''shāla'' () which means to 'lift or carry', generally to take or move things from one place to another, Fasting during S ...

moons, resulting in the fasting and Eid in certain regions of

Khyber Pakthunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...

including Peshawar, although most of the rest of Pakistan follows the central

Ruet-e-Hilal Committee Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee ( ur, ) of Pakistan is the department which announces the sighting of the new moon. Its head is now Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad assisted by 150 observatories of the Pakistan Meteorological Department. Establishment ...

. Popalzai is also serving as the Emir of the

Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat ( ur, عالمی مجلس تحفظ ختمِ نبوت) is an international Islamic organization. Founded by Syed Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari in 1954 in Multan when Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam was banned due to Khat ...

chapter.

Biography

Mufti Popalzai is born into the

Popalzai Popalzai or Popalzay ( ps, پوپلزی), also known as Popal, are Durrani (formerly called Abdali or Bor Tareen) Pashtuns of Afghanistan. The Popalzai are part of the Zirak confederation of Pashtun tribes. The origin of the Abdali forefathers ...

clan of

Durrani The Durrānī ( ps, دراني, ), formerly known as Abdālī (), are one of the largest tribes of Pashtuns. Their traditional homeland is in southern Afghanistan (Loy Kandahar region), straddling into Toba Achakzai in Balochistan, Pakistan, but ...

tribe of

Pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

. He studied Islamic studies at

Islamia College Peshawar Islamia College Peshawar (ICP) ( ur, اسلامیہ کالج پشاور) is a public university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...

. Mufti Popalzai has large following in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Tribal Areas, and the northern tip of Balochistan province among Pashtuns.

References

Pakistani Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam People from Peshawar Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Islamia College University alumni Pakistani Islamic religious leaders Muslim missionaries Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat people Deobandis {{Pakistan-bio-stub