Bihari Muslims

Bihari Muslims are those adherents of Islam who identify linguistically, culturally, and genealogically as Biharis. They are geographically native to the region comprising the Bihar state of India, although there are significantly large communities of Bihari Muslims living elsewhere in the Indian subcontinent due to the partition of India in 1947, which prompted the community to migrate en masse from Bihar to the dominion of Pakistan.
Bihari Muslims make up a significant minority in Pakistan under the diverse community of Muhajirs, and largely began arriving in the country following the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971, which led to the secession of East Pakistan from the Pakistani union as the independent state of Bangladesh.
The majority of Bihari Muslims adhere to the Sunni branch of Islam and the adoption of the religion by Biharis traces back to the 14th century, when Afghan traders and Sufi missionaries began to arrive in the region a century prior to the Mughal conquest of India. There are also a significant minority of Biharis who adhere to the Shia branch of Islam, largely residing in Patna and Gopalpur in Siwan, tracing their religious descent to Shia Muslim settlers of distant Persian ancestry from Lucknow in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, who arrived in the region during the 19th century.

History

The large-scale arrival of Muslims in Bihar began in the 14th century, when Turk traders and Sufi saints-warriors settled in the South Bihar plains and furthered the process of agricultural colonisation while also spreading Islam among the local populace. Muslims were not the only new immigrants to Bihar during this period. Inscriptions in Bihar Sharif tell of a Sufi warrior by the name of Malik Ibrahim Bayu who came to Bihar and defeated the non-Hindu Kol tribe who had been oppressing the local Muslims. He conquered many Kol chiefdoms.
Some of the kings and chieftains of medieval Bihar were Muslim. The chieftaincy of Kharagpur Raj in modern-day Munger district was originally controlled by Hindu Rajputs. In 1615 after a failed rebellion by Raja Sangram Singh, his son, Toral Mal converted and he changed his name to Roz Afzun.
The Faujdars of Purnea created an autonomous territory for themselves under the leadership of Saif Khan and ruled in parts of Eastern Bihar in the early 1700s. They were engaged in a protracted conflict with the neighbouring Kingdom of Nepal.
Many Bihari Muslims migrated to West Pakistan and East Pakistan after the partition of India in 1947. In the context of the 1971 war in Bangladesh, Biharis were seen as collaborators of the Pakistan Army and subjected to violence of all sorts. They then sought refuge in Pakistan. While the 1973–74 Delhi Agreement facilitated the repatriation of some refugees, only 144,800 non-Bengalis were repatriated to Pakistan, with over 258,000 left awaiting relocation. In Pakistan, many settled in Karachi's low-income neighborhoods such as Orangi Town, Korangi Town, Musa Colony, and others. However, these communities remained vulnerable, particularly during ethnic conflicts like the Qasba-Aligarh Colony Massacre in 1986. Repatriation efforts slowed significantly after 1982, with only 15,000 Biharis resettled in Pakistan by then. A brief resumption in 1993 resulted in the transfer of just 53 families before protests halted the process again. This has led to the issue of stranded Pakistanis in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, Biharis faced legal and social barriers to citizenship. It was not until a 2008 Supreme Court ruling that Biharis born after 1971, or who were minors at the time, were granted Bangladeshi citizenship and voting rights.

Distribution by district

The following table shows the Muslim population of Bihar by district:

Number	District	Population	Muslim population	Percentage
1	Kishanganj	1,796,348	1,123,456	68%
2	Katihar	2,392,638	1,024,678	43%
3	Araria	2,158,608	887,972	42%
4	Purnia	2,543,942	935,239	38%
5	Darbhanga	3,295,789	748,971	23%
6	Sitamarhi	2,682,720	568,992	21%
7	West Champaran	3,043,466	646,597	21%
8	East Champaran	3,939,773	755,005	19%
9	Bhagalpur	2,423,172	423,246	18%
10	Madhubani	3,575,281	941,579	18%
11	Siwan	2,714,349	494,176	18%
12	Gopalganj	2,152,638	367,219	17%
13	Supaul	1,732,578	302,120	17%
14	Sheohar	515,961	80,076	16%
15	Muzaffarpur	4,746,714	752,358	15%
16	Saharsa	1,508,182	217,922	14%
17	Begusarai	2,349,366	313,713	13%
18	Banka	1,608,773	190,051	12%
19	Gaya	3,473,428	403,439	13%
20	Jamui	1,398,796	170,334	12%
21	Nawada	1,809,696	204,457	11%
22	Madhepura	1,526,646	173,605	11%
23	Aurangabad	2,013,055	221,436	11%
24	Kaimur	1,289,074	123,048	10%
25	Khagaria	1,280,354	131,441	10%
26	Rohtas	2,450,748	246,760	10%
27	Samastipur	3,394,793	355,897	10%
28	Saran	3,248,701	337,767	10%
29	Vaishali	2,718,421	259,158	10%
30	Jehanabad	1,514,315	124,149	8%
31	Munger	1,337,797	98,791	7.4%
32	Patna	4,718,592	366,164	8%
33	Bhojpur	2,243,144	163,193	7%
34	Nalanda	2,370,528	176,871	7%
35	Sheikhpura	525,502	37,755	7%
37	Buxar	1,402,396	86,382	6%
38	Lakhisarai	802,225	35,378	4%

Sum total of this table is 14,780,500 Muslims out of 83.0 million total population in 2001 census, hence Muslims were 16.5% of total population in Bihar. In 2011 census, total population grew to 103.9985 million, of which 16.9% or 17,557,809 were Muslims. During 2001–2011, Muslims grew by 33.433%, while non-Muslims grew by 23.537%. District-wise break up by religions for 2011 is not available.
Kishanganj is the only district in Bihar with a Muslim majority.

Muslim communities

Malik
Julahas
Sheikh of Bihar
Surjapuri
Kunjra or Rayeen
Shershabadia
Muslim Bhumihars
Pathans of Bihar
Darzi or Idrisi
Kulhaiya
Muslim Kayasths
Muslim Rajputs
*Thakurai
*Malkana
*Khanzada
Abdal
Muslim Chhipi
Lal Begi or Lala Baig
Turuk Pasi/Pashai
Sayyid/Syed
Chik
Sai
Muslim Rangrez
Iraqi or Kalal

In common with the rest of India, the Muslims in Bihar are largely descendants of native converts from various castes. The rise of the Indian Muslim population can be traced back to the early 12th century, with many conversions to Islam taking place during the rule of the Sur Empire, which had established its capital in Sasaram.

Statistics

As per the 2022 Bihar caste-based survey, the population of major Muslim castes in Bihar was as follows:

Caste	Categorization	Population	Population as a percentage of total population of Bihar
Shaikh	General	4995897	3.821675389
Momin	EBC	4634245	3.545025061
Surjapuri Muslim	BC	2446212	1.871261196
Dhuniya	EBC	1888192	1.444396651
Rayeen or Kunjra	EBC	1828584	1.398798748
Shershahbadi	EBC	1302644	0.99647421
Kulhaiya	EBC	1253781	0.959095832
Pathan	General	986665	0.754762027
Sai/Faqeer/Diwan/Madar	EBC	663197	0.507321038
Dhobi	EBC	409796	0.313478698
Idrisi or Darzi	EBC	329661	0.252178404
Syed	General	297975	0.227939792
Chudihar	EBC	207914	0.159046477
Thakurai	EBC	147482	0.112818245
Qasab	EBC	133807	0.102357378
Bhat	BC	89052	0.068121468
Madariya	BC	86658	0.066290147
Daphali	EBC	73259	0.05604041
Mehtar, Lalbegi, Halalkhor, Bhangi	EBC	69914	0.05348161
Morshikar	EBC	66607	0.050951878
Pamaria	EBC	64890	0.049638437
Muslim Nats	EBC	61629	0.047143893
Gaddi	BC	57617	0.044074862
Mukairi	EBC	56522	0.043237228
Cheeq	EBC	50404	0.038557185
Jat Muslim	BC	44949	0.034384313
Rangrez	EBC	43347	0.033158843
Bakho	EBC	36830	0.02817358
Bhathiyara	EBC	27263	0.020855181
Saikalgarg	EBC	18936	0.014485336
Qadar	EBC	18121	0.013861891
Miriyasin	EBC	15415	0.011791902
Nalband	EBC	11900	0.009103057
Madari	EBC	11620	0.008888868
Abdal	EBC	11433	0.00874582
Itfarosh/Itafarosh/Gadheri/Itpaz Ibrahimi	EBC	9462	0.007238078
Qalandar	EBC	7873	0.006022552
Qaghzi	BC	2360	0.001805312

The Iraqi/Kalal was counted as a subset of Bania caste. Prominent members of the Kalal community had protested against the state government and demanded a separate categorization.