Sir Syed Day celebrated in Oman

MUSCAT: The Alumni of Aligarh Muslim University in Oman celebrated the Sir Syed Day on its 201th birth anniversary of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. Sir Syed Day is celebrated by Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and its alumni every year in the memory of its founder. The event was hosted at Hormuz Grand, Muscat on December 7th, 2018.

The gala event was graced by Prof. Tariq Mansoor, Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University, India as Chief Guest. Rajeev Shukla, the chairman of the India Premier League and the former minster, Government of India was the guest of honour with Vivek Bansal, Ex MLA, MLC, Aligarh. S. Khusro Khan, Secretary Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee was present as the special guest.

The Aligarh Muslim University grew out of the work of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, who in the aftermath of the Indian War of Independence of 1857 felt that it was important for Muslims to gain education and become involved in the public life and government services in India.

Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, one of the architects of modern India, was born on October 17, 1817 in Delhi and started his career as a civil servant. He was one of those early pioneers who recognised the critical role of education in the empowerment of the poor and backward Muslim community.

In 1875, Khan founded the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental (MAO) college in Aligarh and patterned the college after Oxford and Cambridge universities that he had visited on a trip to England. His objective was to build a college in line with the British education system but without compromising its Islamic values.

In more than one ways, Sir Syed was one of the greatest social reformers and a great national builder of modern India. He began to prepare the road map for the formation of a Muslim University by starting various schools. He instituted Scientific Society in 1863 to instil a scientific temperament into Muslims and to make the Western knowledge available to Indians in their own language.

Sir Syed breathed his last on March 27, 1898 and was buried in the premises of the university mosque in the Sir Syed Hall, AMU.