Muhibbullah Babunagari
Muhibbullah Babunagari is a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar. He is the current and 3rd amir of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, rector of Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar. He also held leading positions in Islami Oikya Jote, Befaqul Madarisil Arabia Bangladesh and Al-Haiatul Ulya Lil-Jamiatil Qawmia Bangladesh. He is considered one of the pioneers of Deoband movement in Bangladesh.
Early life and family
Muhibullah was born on 15 February 1934 in the village of Babunagar in Fatikchhari Thana, Chittagong District, East Bengal, Pakistan to a Bengali Muslim family of theologians. His father was Harun Babunagari, the founder of Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar.Education
Babunagari studied at his father's institute, Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar, until class 8. He then proceeded to study at the Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam in Hathazari from class 9. Seeking to extend his Islamic studies to a further level, Babunagari left Bengal to enrol at the Darul Uloom Deoband in North India. In Deoband, Babunagari started from class 9 again. In 1959, he completed Hadith studies at the institute. He studied Hidayah Akhirain under Hussain Ahmad Madani, Sahih al-Bukhari under Syed Fakhruddin Ahmad, Sahih Muslim and Jami' al-Tirmidhi under Ibrahim Balyawi and Sunan Abu Dawood under Fakhrul Hasan.Career
After returning to Bengal following his studies, Babunagari began teaching at Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar, and later became vice-principal.On 15 November 2020, he was elected Chief Adviser to Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh. Earlier, he was the vice-president of this organization.