Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Jul 22: Panakkad Sayyid Nasir Abdul Hayya Shihabuddin Ba'alawi formally assumed office as the new Qazi of Dakshina Kannada district at a ceremony held at Zeenath Baksh Yatheem Khana Hall on Ansari Road, Bunder, on Wednesday.
The programme was presided over by Dr Haji Yenepoya Abdulla Kunhi, president of Masjid Zeenath Baksh and Eidgah Juma Masjid.
Inaugurating the event, Samastha Vidyabhyasa Board treasurer and Kerala Muslim League president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said Mangaluru has a rich Islamic heritage and recalled that religious scholars who came to the region in the past were warmly welcomed by people of all faiths. He prayed that Allah grant strength and wisdom to Sayyid Nasir Shihabuddin Ba'alawi in discharging his responsibilities as the district Qazi.
Samastha general secretary Shaikhuna M T Abdulla Musliyar, Samastha treasurer Shaikhuna Koyyod Umar Musliyar, SYS central secretary Abdussamad Pookkottur and Karnataka health minister U T Khader conveyed their greetings on the occasion.
Among those present were Sayyid Aatakoya Thangal Kumbol, Kavaratti (Lakshadweep) Qazi Sayyid E P Saidali Thangal, Karnataka Haj Committee member Sayyid Ashraf Thangal Adoor, Sayyid Zainul Abidin Thangal Duggaladka, Kanhangad Joint Jamaath secretary Basheer Vellikoth, Shafi Thalangara, son of C M Ustad, Hussain Rahmani, son of Thwakha Ustad, Yusuf Haji, Coastal Development Board chairman M A Gaffoor, NRI entrepreneur Zakariya Jokatte, Kasaragod MLA Mahin Haji, Karnataka State Minimum Wages Advisory Board chairman T M Shaheed Thakkil, Ullal Dargah Committee president Hanif Haji, former president Rashid Haji Ullal, Zeenath Baksh Central Juma Masjid Khateeb Shareef Ashrafi, former Dakshina Kannada Waqf Advisory Committee chairman Abdul Nasir Lakkistar, Dakshina Kannada District Madrasa Management Committee president M A Moydin Haji Addoor, S B Muhammad Darimi, Haji Abdul Samad, and Central Juma Masjid committee members Muhammad Ashraf Halemane and Maqbool Ahmed.
Muhammad Hanif Haji, general secretary of Masjid Zeenath Baksh and Eidgah Juma Masjid, introduced the new Qazi. Treasurer Haji S M Rashid welcomed the gathering, Hanif Hudavi Delampady delivered the introductory address, and vice-president and former mayor K Ashraf proposed the vote of thanks. Student Najmuddin recited the Qur'an.
Sayyid Nasir Abdul Hayya Shihabuddin Ba'alawi was appointed to the post following the demise of former Dakshina Kannada Qazi Shaikhuna Alhaj Thwakha Ahmad Musliyar Al Azhari.
Born on May 2, 1966, at Poovad near Panakkad in Kerala's Malappuram district, Ba'alawi served as Khateeb and Mudarris at several mosques and Islamic institutions after completing his religious studies.
Following his father's demise, he took charge as Qazi in the Andaman Islands and was appointed Grand Qazi of Kozhikode in 2009. He currently serves as Qazi for more than 300 mohallas across Malappuram, Palakkad and Thrissur districts. He is also the principal of Imam Ghazali Academy and Rashidiya Arabic College in Wayanad, patron of the Sign Institute of Social Leadership, and holds key positions in several Sunni religious and educational organisations in Kerala.