Tufail Ahmad is a British journalist and political commentator of
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
origin. He has been the Director of the South Asia Studies Project at the
Middle East Media Research Institute
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI; officially the "Middle East Media and Research Institute") is a nonprofit press monitoring and analysis organization co-founded by former Israeli military intelligence officer Yigal Carmon and ...
(MEMRI) in
Washington, D.C.
)
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, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
In his recent writings, he was described as a Contributing Editor at Firstpost and as Executive Director of the Open Source Institute (OSI), New Delhi.
Life and career
Tufail was born in the
West Champaran district
West Champaran is an administrative district in the state of Bihar in India, located just west of Birgunj. It is the largest district in Bihar with an area of 5,228 km²(2,019sq mi). It is a part of Tirhut Division. The district headquarte ...
in
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
, India. He is currently a British citizen.
[
Tufail has a B.A. (Hons) in ]Sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
from the Aligarh Muslim University
Aligarh Muslim University (abbreviated as AMU) is a Public University, public Central University (India), central university in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as the Muhammadan Anglo-Orie ...
. He further studied Social Systems at Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and r ...
and War Studies at the King's College London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
, receiving M.A. degrees in both. He also holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication
Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) is an Indian media centre of learning and civil service training institute for the Indian Information Service Cadre funded and promoted by the Government of India in New Delhi. The IIMC is an auto ...
, New Delhi.[
][
]
He worked in Delhi for C-voter, Press Trust of India
The Press Trust of India Ltd., commonly known as PTI, is the largest news agency in India. It is headquartered in New Delhi and is a nonprofit cooperative among more than 500 Indian newspapers. It has over 500 full-time employees , including abo ...
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
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 ...
.
[
Tufail is currently the Director of the 'South Asia Studies Project' at the ]Middle East Media Research Institute
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI; officially the "Middle East Media and Research Institute") is a nonprofit press monitoring and analysis organization co-founded by former Israeli military intelligence officer Yigal Carmon and ...
(MEMRI) in Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
His research is focused on jihadist movements in Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
, 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 ...
, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
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.[
]
Works
Tufail co-edited ''The Internet Economy of India'' published by Inomy Media, in 2001.
He writes research reports at MEMRI,
regular columns in The New Indian Express
''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naid ...
and occasional articles in the OPEN magazine.
He has liberal views, opposing jihadism and fundamentalism, and encourages Indian Muslims to participate in Indian polity and society. He warns India and Pakistan of their jihadist threats.
He is concerned about the Liberal-Left intellectuals aligning with the Islamist forces owing to their supposed zeal in opposing the West.[
With the rise of the ]ISIS
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
, Tufail has been tracking the reactions in the Muslim community and highlighting the calls for reform from within the community.
In early 2016, Tufail Ahmad's book ''Jihadist Threat To India -- The Case For Islamic Reformation By An Indian Muslim'' was published in India. The book was launched by Shri Kiren Rijiju, India's federal minister for home affairs, at a ceremony held at the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) in New Delhi on March 31, 2016. At the book launch, other eminent personalities who spoke alongside Rijiju included: former Indian Army chief General N.C. Vij, former Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) chief Shri Vikram Sood, former Indian Army commander Lt.-Gen. Ata Hasnain, and Pakistan affairs expert Sushan Sareen.
Speaking at the launch of his book, 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. 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."
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
The Uniform Civil Code (Hindi: समान नागरिक संहिता, IAST: Samāna Nāgarika Saṃhitā) is a proposal in India to formulate and implement personal laws of citizens which apply on all citizens equally regardless ...
for India. 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. Effectively, Tufail Ahmad is the first Indian to have authored a Uniform Civil Code to further debate about this subject among Indians.
In January 2018, Ahmad critiqued The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 passed by the Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament. Ahmad said the bill fell short of reform for Muslims. With the aid of Smita Dikshit, a legal counsel practicing in the Supreme Court, Ahmad authored an alternative bill to raise awareness about Muslim issues called The Muslim Family Reforms Bill, 2018.
Reception
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. Zafarul Islam Khan
Zafar ul Islam Khan Ex. Chairman of Delhi Minority Commission, author and journalist based in New Delhi. He is currently editor and publisher of The Milli Gazette fortnightly focusing on issues concerning the Muslim community. He is also the fo ...
, the editor of ''The Milli Gazette
''The Milli Gazette'' is an Indian English language digital news publication (formerly a fortnightly compact newspaper) based in Delhi. Founded in January 2000, the publication describes itself as the Indian Muslims' Leading News Source. In 20 ...
'', accused Ahmad of promoting Islamophobic views and likened him to Taslima Nasreen
Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August 1962) is a Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, physician, feminist, secular humanist, and activist. She is known for her writing on women's oppression and criticism of religion. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh ...
and Tarek Fateh. Tufail Ahmad has accused his critics Zafarul Islam and Shahid Siddiqui of promoting a jihadist mindset among Indian Muslims through the Urdu-language media.
References
External links
Columns in India Facts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad, Tufail
Living people
Aligarh Muslim University alumni
Jawaharlal Nehru University alumni
Alumni of King's College London
Indian columnists
British journalists
British male journalists
English Muslims
Indian emigrants to England
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
Year of birth missing (living people)