Aligarh: The Law Society, Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) organised its Seventh International Virtual Conference on ‘Sir Syed: Vision And Mission’.
Chief Guest of the conference, Er. Nadeem A. Tarin, Prominent Businessman and Educationist, Saudi Arabia and AMU Alumnus in his address said that Sir Syed transformed the status of Indians at that time. He understood that modern education is as important as religious education. His mission was to spread the light of education to all corners of the country. Sir Syed worked a lot in that field and successfully established the MAO College.
Er. Tarin further said that we should remember the teachings of Sir Syed as they are very important and we should work in that direction. He adviced the people to come out and help in spreading the mission of Sir Syed. At the end, he congratulated Prof. Shakeel Ahmed Samdani for inviting her to the conference.
This conference was presided by Mr. S. Gurdev Singh, IAS (Rtd.), President, Sikh Educational Society, Chandigarh and AMU Alumnus. Mr Gurdev said that only a few people are remembered by the masses after their death and Sir Syed is one of them. Sir Syed is a person who has left a mark on the history of Indian subcontinent by establishing an educational institution. He further said that Sir Syed was a secular man and his institution has benefited every community in India.
Mr. Gurdev also discussed his personal experiences as a student in AMU and said that he was a member of Hockey Club and won the national championship for 2 consecutive years. At the end, he said that he still remember the teaching of Prof. Hafeezul Rahman, Prof. Dayal and Prof. Mohammad Habib.
Delivering his Keynote Address, Prof. Shafey Kidwai, Chairman, Dept. of Mass Communication and MIC, Public PRO Office, AMU expalined in detail about the life and history of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. He said that Sir Syed is only seen as the founder of Aligarh Muslim University, but in reality he was a multi faceted man.
Prof. Kidwai cleared the doubts in the minds of the participants about Sir Syed’s personality. He also said that Sir Syed showed the people the way to protest. He gave the example of the reply of Sir Syed to William Meur’s book on Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in the form of a book. Prof. Shafey Kidwai further said that Sir Syed was a very secular man.
Prof. Shakeel Samdani, Dean, Faculty of Law, AMU and President, Law Society said that Sir Syed was a multi-faceted man. He was an educationist, social reformer, philosopher, historican and a secular man. Prof. Samdani further elaborated that Sir Syed contributed a lot for the Indians, by successfully convincing the British to increase the age of Indians in Civil Services Examinations and also by conducting exams in India as well.
Prof. Shakeel Samdani further said that Sir Syed’s was a secular man who never discriminated against anyone on the basis of religion. The doors of MAO College was open for everyone. Prof. Samdani said that both our guests, Er Nadeem A Tarin and Mr. Gurdev Singh are carrying forward the legacy of Sir Syed by successfully running various educational institutions throughout the country. Prof. Samdani also praised the efforts of Prof. Tariq Mansoor (VC) and Mr. Abdul Hamid (Registrar) for carrying forward the legacy of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.
Ms Latifa Ben Arfa Rabai, Head, Research, Innovation, Entrepreneurship & PostGraduate Unit, University of Al Buraimi, Oman addressed the conference as Guest of Honour. She highlighted the importance of scientific education in the modern world and related it with the vision of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. She said that Sir Syed was a farsighted man who understood the importance of scientific education very early. She also advised the participants to learn their mother language and at least one foreign language.
Mr. Mohammad Nasir, Dept. of Law while welcoming the guests said that today’s conference marks the kickstart of Sir Syed Day Celebrations -2020. He further said Sir Syed was himself a legal professional and legal education was started by Sir Syed himself.
Prof. Mohammad Ashraf, Dept of Law, AMU while proposing the vote of thanks congratulated the Law Society under the leadership of Prof. Shakeel Samdani for organizing seven International Conferences in such a short period of time. The conference was moderated by Abdullah Samdani, Secretary, Law Society.
Dr. Shad Ahmad Khan, Shalja Singh, Akash Ranjan Goswami, Mahelaka Abrar and Lyba Fatima introduced the guests in this conference.
This conference was made successful with the efforts of Sadaf Khan, Hunain Khaild, Samreen Ahmad, Shoeb Ali, Shubham Kumar, Pawan Varshney, Kashif Sultan, Ayesha Samdani, Amber Tanweer, Chandan Gupta, Somya Goyal, Samra Hashim and Fozia.