The Tablighi Jamaat Shura is the highest authority within Tablighi Jamaat and makes the key decisions of the movement on a Global Level. Its members consist of senior elders from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The Shura’s most recognized gathering/Mashawara (conference) are the yearly Mashwaras after Raiwind Ijtema and Tongi Ijtema, which usually occurs in November (for Raiwind Ijtema) and January (for Tongi Ijtema). Amongst Tablighi Jamaat adherents, the Shura is commonly referred to as “Aalami Shura”.
The establishment of the Shura is well in line with the vision of Maulana Ilyas (Founder of Tablighi Jamaat):
In the future, this effort will function under the supervision of a Shura
Source: Maulana Yaaqub’s Letter, Last letters of Maulana Ilyas.
Tablighi Jamaat had 3 Ameers (Leaders) before the Aalami Shura became the highest authority from 1995 until today.
Current Tablighi Jamaat Shura Members / Aalami Shura List as of 2025
The current members of the Tablighi Jamaat World Shura as of 2025 are:
- Maulana Ibrahim Dewla (India)
- Maulana Ahmed Laat (India)
- Maulana Zuhair Ul Hasan (India)
- Haji Farooq Ahmad (India)
- Maulana Nazrur Rahman (Pakistan)
- Maulana Ubaidullah Khurshid (Pakistan)
- Maulana Zia ul Haq (Pakistan)
- Maulana Ahsan Ul Haq (Pakistan)
- Maulana Ahmed Batla (Pakistan)
- Maulana Qari Zubair (Bangladesh)
- Maulana Rabiul Haque (Bangladesh)
The letter below is proof of this:
The following Aalami Shura members have recently passed away:
- Haji Abdul Wahab (Pakistan) – Passed away on the 18th of November 2018. His vacant position was replaced by Maulana Ahsan Ul Haq.
- Maulana Yaqub (India) – Passed away on the 16th of February 2019. His vacant position was replaced by Haji Farooq Ahmad of Bangalore.
- Maulana Abdul Rehman (Pakistan) – Passed away on 17th October 2020, age 80 at the time of death. His vacant position was replaced by Maulana Ahmad Batla, who is the son-in-law of Maulana Nazrul Rahman.
The following members were invited to work together and be part of the Shura but did not accept it.
- Maulana Saad (India)
- Wasiful Islam (Bangladesh)
History of the Tablighi Jamaat Aalami Shura
The Tablighi Jamaat Shura (aka Aalami Shura) was formed on the 14th of June 1993 by Maulana Inaamul Hasan (The third Amir of Jamaat) at Nizamuddin Markaz, two years prior to his demise. The appointed members were: (1) Maulana Saeed Ahmad Khan, (2) Mufti Zaenal Abidin, (3) Haji Afdhal, (4) Haji Abdul Muqit, (5) Haji Abdul Wahab, (6) Maulana Izharul Hasan, (7) Maulana Umar Palanpuri, (8) Maulana Zubair Ul Hassan, (9) Miyaji Mehrab Mewati, and (10) Maulana Saad.
The purpose of the Aalami Shura was to patronage the work together with Maulana Inaamul Hasan who was the Amir of Tablighi Jamaat at that time. When clarified by Maulana Syed Ahmed Khan, Maulana Inaamul Hasan clarified that if he was not around, the Faisal (deciding chairperson) would rotate amongst them.
Source: Dakwah wa Tabligh Azhim Mehnat ke Maujudah Halat, Page 16
On the 12th of June 1995, after the demise of Maulana Inaamul Hasan, the Aalami Shura decided that the work would continue under the current Shura, with a rotating Faisal (deciding chairperson) in their Mashwaras. No new Amir (leader) was to be appointed and Bay’ah (Oath of Allegiance to a person) was to be stopped in Nizamuddin Markaz.
The agreement was signed by all members of the Aalami Shura including Maulana Saad. Maulana Saad, however, treacherously violated this agreement in 2014, which resulted in the Tablighi Jamaat Split (Ikhtilaaf).
On the 16th of November 2015, as there were only 2 members left in the Tablighi Jamaat Shura (due to members passing away), 11 new members were appointed to the Aalami Shura following a Mashwara (meeting) that took place at Raiwind Ijtema. Haji Abdul Wahab was the Faisala (deciding chairperson) of the Mashwara. The new appointees were:
- Maulana Ibrahim Dewla (India)
- Maulana Yaqub (India)
- Maulana Ahmed Laat (India)
- Maulana Zuhairul Hasan (India)
- Maulana Nazrur Rahman (Pakistan)
- Maulana Abdur Rehman (Pakistan)
- Maulana Ubaidullah Khurshid (Pakistan)
- Maulana Zia ul Haq (Pakistan)
- Maulana Qari Zubair (Bangladesh)
- Maulana Rabiul Haque (Bangladesh)
- Wasiful Islam (Bangladesh)
The appointment was signed by all the participating members except Maulana Saad and Wasiful Islam
Source: World Shura Appointment Letter 2015
Letters/statements issued by Elders of Tablighi Jamaat on Maulana Saad
Below are links to various Letters/statements issued by the Elders of the Tablighi Jamaat regarding their separation with Maulana Saad:
- Haji Abdul Wahhab Sahab’s Statements
- Maulana Ibrahim Dewla’s Letter (The most senior Elder of Nizamuddin, teacher of Maulana Saad)
- Maulana Yaqub’s Letter (The most experienced senior elder, teacher of both Maulana Saad and Maulana Saad’s Father, Maulana Harun)
- Joint letter from Elders (Senior elders)
- Choudhry Amanatullah’s detail explanation on what really happened in Nizamuddin (Shura of Delhi, Nizamuddin Madrasa Shura)
- Dr Khalid Siddiqui’s Letter (Senior Elder)
READ: Full Tablighi Jamaat History and how the split happened
Tablighi Jamaat Shura vs Maulana Saad Offshoot
Almost 95% of all the senior elders are with the Shura. Maulana Saad, although very famous, is relatively new and has not spent even 40 days in the Path of Allah as testified by Haji Abdul Wahab and Chaudhry Amanatullah (Shura of Nizamuddin Madrasah).
The following is the list of Elders:
| Tablighi Jamaat Shura | Maulana Saad |
| Defacto Leader Haji Abdul Wahab Ml Ibrahim Dewla *, ** | Leader Maulana Saad |
| Indian Senior Elders Ml Ahmad Laat * Ml Yaqub ** Ml Zuhairul Hasan* Bhai Farooq* Dr Khalid Siddiqui Ml Ismail Godhra Ml Usman Kakosi Ml A Rehman Ruyana Ml Altaf Prof Sanaullah Ml Ahmad Mewati Eng Shameem Bihar Ml Abu Bakar Bijapur ** Prof Nadir Ali Khan Aligarh Iqbal Nayar Bihar Prof Munawar Pasha Chennai Prof A Rahman Chennai Bhai Sanobar Bhai Parveez Kashmir C Amanatullah Mewati Ml Shahid Saharanpuri Ml Shuhaib Ml Ubaidullah Khan Shakeel Bhai Mumbra A Rehman Yamuna Nagar Muhsin Utsmani Lucknow | Indian Senior Elders Ml Mustakim Bhai Mushtaq |
| Indian Elders (Lesser) Dr. Farahim Aligarh Bhai Chaudry Rafiq Ml A Hussain Ghodrea Ml Ahmed Bahawalpur Haji Mumtaz ** Ml Kurshid Bhay Sanobar Ml Zahid Az-Zahiri Ml Akbar Shareef Mufti Shafeeq Ahmad Bhai Gulfam Dehradun Bhai Mumraaz Ml Khubaib Ml Fareed Ghodrea Dr A Mannan Aligarh Bhai Yaqub Dehradun Bhai Bahar Dehradun Bhai Ayub Ghaziabad Bhai Ismail Khan Khurjawale Dr. Shakeel Ayyub Sahab Ghaziabad Bhai Hashmat Ali Ml Yunus Palanpuri | Indian Elders (Lesser) Ml Shamim |
| Pakistan Elders Ml Ehsan Ml Abdur Rahman Ml Nazrur Rehman * Ml Zia ul Haq * Ml Ubaidullah Khursheed * Ml Ahsaanul Haq * Ml Ahmad Batla * Bhai Yameen Dr. Ruhullah Ml Jameel Ahmed Ml Ahmad Bahawalpuri Ml Fahim | Pakistan Elders (N/A) |
| Bangladesh Elders Ml Rabiul Haque * Ml Qari Zubair * Mufti A Shafi Mufti A Malek | Bangladesh Elders Wasiful Islam |
| Indonesian Elders Pak Muslihuddin Jafar Ustadz Luthfi Al-Banjary Kiyai Ahmad Mukhlisun Pak Aminuddin Noor Pak Suaib Gani (Sulawesi) | Indonesia Elders Pak Cecep Firdaus |
| Arab Elders Sh Umar Al Khateeb Jordon Sh Ghassan Zarey Madinah Sh Fazil Basiyoni Jeddah Sh Yusuf Al Masari Jeddah Sh Taha Abdus Sattar Egypt Sh Hasan An Nasr Egypt Sh Rashed Al Haqqan Kuwait Sh Saleh Muqbil Yemen | Arab Elders |
| Others: Ishaq Patel UK Ml Sulaiman Khatani SA Cheikh Younes France Hj Arshad Malaysia AR Pattalung Thailand Sh Motaz Australia Ahmad Bhiku New Zealand | Others: Haji Bostan UK Cheikh Wissam France |
* Member of Current Shura
** Teacher of Maulana Saad
Notes:
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The current Shura members for India are ten(10):
- Maulana Ibrahim Dewla
- Maulana Ahmad Laat
- Maulana Zuhair
- Hj Farook Ahmad
- Dr Khalid Siddiqui
- Prof Sanaullah
- Maulana Ismail Ghodra
- Maulana Usman Kakusi
- Maulana Altaf
- Bhai Sanobar
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Maulana Zubair Ahmed (aka Qari Jubayer) from Bangladesh, is considered the most senior leader of Tablighi Jamaat in Bangladesh due to his age (vs the younger Maulana Rabiul Haque). Maulana Zubair Ahmed aka Qari Jubayer was born in 1945. As of 2023, he is 78 years old.
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Haji Mumtaz was the caretaker / foster father of Maulana Saad after his father (Maulana Haroon) passed away. Haji Mumtaz was the one that took care of him and brought him around when Maulana Saad was a child. Haji Mumtaz became one of the vocal critics of Maulana Saad and strongly objected to him in the historic 2015 Raiwind Mashwara.
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Maulana Yasin Mewati was the Khadim (personal assistant) of Maulana Saad from 1996 to 2013 and accompanied him all the time for a period of 17 years. He has given some shocking testimonies such as ‘Maulana Saad has not spent any time in Jamaat (the path of Allah)‘ He was one of the main targets of the Ramadhan 2016 Nizamuddin Bloodshed.
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Maulana Shamim is one of the key supporters of Maulana Saad. He travels all over the world coercing people to accept Maulana Saad as the Ameer. As of May 2025, he is 73 years old.
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Bhai Mushtaq passed away 10th of April 2018. He is from Bombay and one of the only two Senior Elders known to support Maulana Saad.
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Sheikh Rashed Al Haqqan (Kuwait) passed away 20th of May 2020.
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Sheikh Umar Al-Khateeb of Jordon despite being with the Aalami Shura, facilitates Jamaats from Maulana Saad’s Group as long as they do not talk about the differences.
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Sheikh Fadil Basiyoni from Jeddah Saudi passed away (Shaheed) in the path of Allah in Indonesia 5th of April 2020.
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As of 2023, Pak Muslihuddin Jafar is the only original Shura of Indonesia that is still alive. All other original Shura of Indonesia members have passed away. All 5/6 Shuras of Indonesia are with the Aalami Shura except for Pak Cecep Firdaus.
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Hj Arshad was one of the 13 original Shuras of Malaysia that was appointed by Maulana Inaamul Hassan (the Third Amir of Tabligh). He and his family were forced to vacate both the Markaz in Sri Petaling (Kuala Lumpur) and their house despite being the oldest Shura there. He passed away on the 11th of November 2021.
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Cheikh Dr. Wissam Tabara (Lebanese origin), resides in both France and Lebanon. He is one of the few Arab-speaking elders who is strongly supporting Maulana Saad. However, Lebanon is heavily on the Shura Side. France, like many other Western countries, is heavily on the Aalami Shura Side as well.
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Maulana Fahim (Raiwind) was the Khadem of Haji Abdul Wahab Sahab for 25 years. He is the author of “Meray Haji Sahab” a book on Haji Sahab’s biography. He passed away at age 65, on 11 January 2024 due to cancer.
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The key (original) Shura members of Australia and New Zealand (e.g. Sh Motaz, Sh Abdullah, Ahmad Bhiku) are with the Shura.