Pakistan Perspectives

Vol. 11, No. 1, January-June 2006

Ismaili Community in Pakistan:

Its Doctrines, History and Present Makeup
Amin Valliani
During the recent months, Ismaili community of Pakistan has come in
the limelight, particularly creation of the Aga Khan University’s
Examination Board at the national level has made the community a target
of malicious propaganda carried out by certain political and religious
circles. They have expressed doubts that the community is bent upon
secularizing the national curriculum. The federal minister for education
and the AKU management have responded to the situation. Though the
community is a separate entity, nothing to do with the examination
board, but nevertheless, it has suffered an affront and preferred to remain
quiet. At this juncture one is supposed to know the origin and the long
history of about fourteen hundred years of the community. The
knowledge about its role in the Pakistan movement and later its
contribution in the development of Pakistan may help in removing
unnecessary doubts about the community.
The origin of Ismailis, like the origin of Islam, lies in the
Arabian peninsula. Ismailis constitute one of the major sects within the
Shia branch of Islam. They have their roots in the history of Islam.
Tracing themselves to the earliest period of Islam, they, like other Shias,
adhere to the Shia interpretation of Islam, believing that the line of
Imams stemmed immediately after the Prophet’s demise from Hazrat Ali,
the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law and Fatimah, the Prophet’s daughter.
The succession to Imamat is by way of nass (designation), which is an
absolute prerogative of the Imam of the time to appoint his successor
from amongst any of his male descendants.1 In this way, the present Aga
Khan-IV is the forty-ninth Imam of the Ismailis.
The Ismailis share the fundamental tenets of Islam, as described
in the Quran, with other Muslims. However, the institute of Imamat is
central in the Ismaili theology. The Imam provides a pathway for
applying these tenets in day-to-day life of the community. He enjoys

1
See para C and D of the Preamble of Ismaili Constitution, 1986.
94 Pakistan Perspectives

absolute authority on all religious and temporal matters of the

community. As society passes through various stages of development,
there is a constant need of reorientation of these tenets at individual and
collective levels in the community. Hence, the Imam allows his mission
(dawa) to review the expression of these tenets in order to find the
appropriate language to suit the times. The dawa adapts to address the
needs and the demands of the changing world. For Ismailis, the religious
goals are to be achieved by adhering to and following upon the tariqah
based on Imam’s guidance.
The Imam, as the spiritual head of the community, unfolds a
panorama of continuity and change, fusing a sense of tradition with an
acute awareness of modern realities. During the last half-century,
numbers of conferences2 had been organized to find appropriate
expressions of fundamental tenets. In these conferences, certain tenets,
which have been there since the beginning, were brought forth, re-
highlighted and re-emphasized to make the community aware of their
importance. These include the concept of the matter and the spirit aimed
at striking a balance between the worldly and spiritual aspects of life, the
concept of human being – the crown creation of Allah – with a sense of
the care and responsibility towards other Godly creation and also the
concept of the religion, the straight path leading towards eternity.
The Imam also gives constitutions to the community to facilitate
the working of the different community organisations and to run their
day-to-day worldly matters. Though it seems that ordaining the written
constitutions by the Imam for the community is a recent phenomenon of
the Ismaili history of last century. The most recent constitution, ordained
by the Imam in 1986, was re-ordained in 1998. The present constitution
describes the Ismaili doctrines in its preamble while the rest of it deals
with the framework of all institutions working within and without the
Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN). The previous constitutions
of 1960s were country-wise; the Ismailis living in different countries had
different constitutions ordained by the Imam. The constitution
proclaimed for Pakistan in August 1962 mentioned the rules of business
of various organisations working within the community. Some trivial

2
The proceeding of the conferences were narrated of and on, but were never
circulated in writing. However, the follow-up implementation of these
minutes was often expressed. See one such example of audio-video material
exhibition and its inauguration by Begum Salimah Aga Khan, published in
Ismaili Bulletin, April 1975.

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Ismaili Community in Pakistan: Its Doctrines… 95

things such as arrangements relating to births, deaths, engagements and

marriage ceremonies were elaborately mentioned.3
As per preamble of the present constitution (of 1986 re-ordained
in1998) the Imam of the time is concerned with spiritual advancement as
well as improvement of the quality of life of his murids. ‘The Imam’s
tali’m lights the murid’s path to spiritual enlightenment and vision in
temporal matters’. The Imam guides the murids and motivates them to
develop their potentials. Murids are supposed to lead a life recommended
by the Imam within the basic parameters of Islam.
Among the tariqah practices, bayah is the first and foremost
obligatory act of the murid (follower) who accepts the Imam’s
allegiance. After bayah, the murid is supposed to lead his/her life in
accordance with Imam’s guidance. The murid has some compulsory
practices on daily basis, which include prayer and dasond/maal-e-Imam.4
There are other devotional duties which murid performs out of love and
affection for the Imam, if he/she wishes so, but these are not termed as
compulsory.

History
The early periods of Ismaili history were full of internal and external
challenges, conflicts, wars, and altercations with opposing communities
meant to prove their stand. The anti-Ismaili forces always looked upon
the Ismailis with hostility and suspicion. They intensely hated Ismailis
and styled them as heretics (rafizis).5 These forces also branded them
with derogatory names such as mulhid and assassins, and sometimes,
they were persecuted and oppressed. Even in these difficult
circumstances, the Ismaili missionaries, by their attitudes and actions, not
just gained influence but also established their rule over certain
territories, like Mansurah in Sindh6 which had been an Ismaili
stronghold, a few years before Mahmud of Ghaznah (d.1030) captured

3
See Chapter XI, The Ismaili Constitution of Councils and Jamat of Shia
Imami Ismaili Muslims of Pakistan, 1962.
4
In the Indian context, the Khojas pay dasond (1/10) to the Imam and 1/12 to
the Pir. The present Aga Khan-IV holds the dual offices of the Imam and
Pir. This was willed by the Aga Khan-III before his death.
5
From Arabic word rafz; literally meaning ‘forsaking’. The terms rafizi was
originally applied to the Shias who joined Zaid Ibn Ali but forsook him
upon cursing some early dignitaries of Islam. But it came afterwards to
denote any sect of Shias. See Dr. Muhammad Yasin, A Social History of
Islam, p.5.
6
Dr. I.H. Qureshi, The Muslim Community of Indo-Pakistan Subcontinent
(Karachi, Ma’aref Ltd., 1977), p.3.

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96 Pakistan Perspectives

the town. Another stronghold of the Ismailis was Multan – which was
visited by Muqaddasi in the year 985 AD when the Ismailis were ruling –
reciting the khutba (a sermon in Friday prayer) in the name of Fatimid
Ismaili Caliph of Egypt.7

Indian subcontinent
In comparison to other Shia communities, the Ismailis came much earlier
to the Indian subcontinent to win new followers. It is on the record that
the Ithna Asharis (Twelver Shias) were invisible in the beginning,
though the cultural link between India and Iran were there since the
advent of Islam.8 The Ithna Asharis made their presence felt during the
reign of the Mughal King Humayun (1530-1556) who is said to have
embraced Shiism during a period of exile in Iran, perhaps to secure the
help of the Safavid king Shah Tehmasp (1524-1576). Humayun brought
with him the Iranian Shia officials, scholars, and thousands of soldiers to
Delhi – Bayram Khan, the guardian of Humayun’s son Akber (1556-
1605) was possibly Shia.9
Contrary to this, the Ismaili roots are much older in the
subcontinent. They had links with Yemen, which was one of the Fatimid
bases outside Egypt. Later on the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt stood
divided because of a schism among the sons of Caliph Al-Mustansir
(died 1094). The Nizari branch of the Fatimids established its base at
Alamut (Iran) and continued with its missionary activities in India. The
Mongols destroyed Alamut in 1256 A.D and the Ismaili Imams went into
concealment but the missionary activities continued in many areas.
However, one can note that after the Mongol onslaught, there
was a shift in Ismaili dawa policy. They became more interested in
consolidating their inner folds rather than establishing their political rule
or sultanate over a particular territory. The history teaches that
embracing the idea of a separate Ismaili communal state has cost in terms
of immense hostility, sorrows and sufferings. Therefore, the Ismailis
should align themselves on the right side of the history and be a partner
in progress of the concerned states that they inhabit. The present day
Ismaili community continues to follow the same policy. It prefers to
remain stateless, apolitical and introvert rather than striving for an
Ismaili state. Though there are few instances where the Imam or
individual Ismaili murids occupied some political positions in some

7
Ibid., p.40.
8
Ibid., p.46.
9
Musa Khan Jalalzai, The Sunni-Shia Conflict in Pakistan (Karachi: Book
Traders), p.256.

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Ismaili Community in Pakistan: Its Doctrines… 97

pluralistic state, but the community at large never aspires for an Ismaili
state. However, recently it has become internationalized, globally
widespread in all continents of the world. In the Indian subcontinent, the
Ismaili missionaries adopted a very flexible approach. In view of the
Indian context, the converts were allowed to maintain status quo in their
day-to-day lifestyle, but gradually over a long time the Islamic essence
was conveyed to them. B. Lewis says: ‘...The Ismaili religion evolved
over a long period and a wide area, and meant different things at
different times and places…’.10 It is also said that in those days the
Ismaili pirs had a tradition of presenting themselves as adherents of the
faith within which they worked. There are several instances on record
where Ismaili pirs appeared as saintly bhagats or jogis and instead of
contradicting the doctrines of the faith they sought to jell. The Ismaili
pirs, accepted basic assumptions, introduced some of Ismaili beliefs in a
disguised form and, slowly and gradually, paved the way for total
conversion.11
Lack of total adherence has never worried the Ismaili pirs. They
were fully confident that the new converts would eventually accept the
faith fully and fervidly with their hearts and heads through the process of
evolution, to be unfolded with time. In this manner, many segments of
the society were converted, some were named as guptis, a term used for
those who were allowed to maintain status quo outwardly but keeping
their inner faith secret to oneself. The Ismailis being Shia accept the
principle of taqiyyah, which allows them to act like the other segments of
the society. Thus they were allowed to continue the practices of their
forefathers as usual in an outwardly manner but some secret rites of
devotion to the Imam were also introduced.
Thus Ismaili pirs believed in evolution in their mission activities.
They never sought cultural overhauling nor laid emphasis for the
immediate and total religious shifting of Hindus to Islamic ideologies.
The new converts were allowed to retain their original names and follow
local lifestyles and cultural patterns. They just indicated that the new
converts are on sat panth – a term used for a true path. Later at some
point in history, these new converts in Sindh, Kutchh and Kathiawar,
acquired a respectable name of Khoja. The origin of this name lies in
Persian word Khawaja, normally used for a respectable trader.12 While a
present-day local historian has linked the word ‘Khoja’ to a Hindi verb

10
Bernard Lewis, The Assassin (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson), p.138.
11
Dr. I.H. Qureshi, op.cit., p.41.
12
Dr. Muhammad Yasin, A Social History of Islam (Lahore: Book Traders),
p.5.

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khoj which means to search or dig out.13 He goes on to say that the local
low castes Hindus, converted to Islam were heavily loaded with rituals.
After embracing Islam, they were instructed to get absorbed (kho‘ja)
through the practice of dhikr (the remembrance of God). This establishes
a further need of research in this connection.
While in Punjab, the new converts were named as Shamsi, a
name referring to a saintly person, Pir Shamsuddin (d.1356), who came
especially for dawa activities in Punjab. Similarly, another Ismaili saintly
person named a small segment of Gujraati people, residing in Sidhpur
(Indian state of Gujraat) as momnas – from Arabic word momin
(believers).
Immediately on conversion, the new converts were provided
with a centre called jamatkhana, a meeting place; they appointed mukhis
as local leaders to run the day to day functions of the community. There
is a rich body of literature known as ginans and granths (devotional
religious hymns) which the community still cherishes and sings in its
religious gatherings. These are attributed to the pirs but its actual
authorship is an issue of debate within the community.

British period (1856-1947)

During British rule in the subcontinent, the forty-sixth Ismaili Imam
(Hassan Ali Shah), the Aga Khan-I migrated to India from Iran in early
1840s. He co-operated with the British government to consolidate their
rule in Sindh and remained active till his death in 1881. The forty-
seventh Imam (Ali Shah), the Aga Khan-II (d.1885) devoted his time to
the cause of the education of the community.14
The forty-eighth Imam (Sultan Muhammad Shah), the Aga
Khan-III (1877-1957) was frontline leader of Indian Muslims who laid
the lasting foundation of Muslim political organisation. In 1906, he led a
delegation to Viceroy Lord Minto to get political concessions for
Muslims. He actively helped the Muslim educational movement
launched by Sir Sayyed Ahmad Khan (1817-1897). The Aga Khan-III
also served as the first President of All India Muslim League and stood
firmly by the side of Sunni Muslims on Khilafat Committee although, as
a Shia Muslim, he did not personally recognize the Ottoman sultans as
caliphs of the Muslim ummah. The motive of joining hands with the
Sunnis was to spare Muslim political power from further erosion. In

13
F. Alexander Bailee, Kurranchee Past, Present and Future (Karachi:
Oxford University Press), p.92.
14
Mumtaz Tajuddin, Ismailis Through History (Karachi: Islamic Book
Publisher), p. 386.

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1928, he responded wholeheartedly when Muslims of the subcontinent

turned to him for guidance in their moment of despair and anxiety.

Pakistan (1947-2005)
In Pakistan, the Ismaili community emerged with a new character of an
organised, unified and progressive community, headed by a central
leadership of hereditary Imam. The Imam usually stationed himself in
Europe but often visits Pakistan to see his community. He has built vast
network of social institutions around the globe and is much concerned
with the development of the community.
Through out history the Ismaili community remained segmented
with multi-ethnic dimensions – a community built up with many ethnic
groups with vast differences of cultures, traditions, languages and
geographical locations. Each segment had accepted Islam through
different strategies of Ismaili dawa system in different period of history;
therefore, they adhered to different traditions before the emergence of
Pakistan. But after independence, a planned process of modernization
under the leadership of a hereditary Imam was launched, which ensured
equal attention to and equal say for all segments. As a result thereof,
each segment started coming closer to each other.
The creation of Pakistan in 1947 was a blessing in disguise for
the Ismailis of Pakistan, which enabled them to go through the process of
modernization and development. The role of earlier missionaries i.e. pirs
stood replaced by an Institution. The Aga Khan-III constituted a dawa
organisation called Ismailia Association for Pakistan (IAP) in 1948
aimed at imparting religious education to the community. The Aga
Khan-III declared the association to be the successor of former Ismaili
dais and pirs who converted the local Hindus to Islam centuries ago. The
Aga Khan-III had the longest period of Imamat in the Ismaili history
(1885 to 1957) but in his early period of Imamat, he did not drastically
change the social and cultural patterns of Ismailis, nor touched the
religious parlance and vocabulary. Until the emergence of Pakistan,
members were allowed to maintain a status quo. They retained the
Hinduistic cultural elements i.e. dress, languages, and even names etc.
The early Ismailis have Indian names like Ramji, Moolji, Shivji, etc. of
their origin. But gradually the Ismaili community in Pakistan started
adopting Islamic parlance in their daily matters. In the religious liturgy,
Arabic prayers and Quranic elements were gradually introduced. Hindu
terms were abandoned and Islam became the most visible aspect of their
daily lives. By and large, it was assumed that living in an Islamic
country, the Ismaili community will evolve to an extent where Islam
would be the main framework for regulating the affairs of the

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community. In Pakistan the present day Ismaili community can thus be

seen only through their history which consists of different segments.
Each segment has its legends, its history, languages and rich cultural
traditions.

Khojas
Khojas constitute a sizeable segment of the Ismaili community, mainly
concentrated in Sindh and Karachi. They were converted from Hinduism
to Islam some 500-700 years ago. They were originally based in the
southwestern coastal regions of Indian subcontinent, which include
Sindh, Kutchh, Kathiawar, and Makran coast. According to traditions,
these Khojas have remained mobile, enterprising and risk-taking during
the last many centuries. On the creation of Pakistan in 1947, thousands of
Khojas from the western regions of India migrated to eastern and western
wings of Pakistan, and started contributing towards the socio-economic
upliftment of Pakistan. They established many business enterprises,
mills, factories, banks and hotels etc. thus becoming an affluent
community. They built many jamatkhanas in Karachi, which stand for
architectural monuments of the city. The surge of Khoja Ismailis to
Pakistan continued for a long period because of political turmoil and
upheaval in neighboring countries. Pakistan is considered as a safe place
for all Ismailis, they have established many strong institutions. The
Ismailis from India moved towards Pakistan till 1960s. In 1964,
thousands of Ismailis left Burma to settle in East and West Pakistan.
Fortunately, the process was so smooth that it did not shake the fragile
economy of Pakistan. Again in 1970-71, almost 90% Khojas Ismaili
community of East Pakistan moved out because of political turmoil and
military action against native Bengalis. In 1990, certain Kuwaiti Ismaili
families also moved towards Pakistan due to Iraqi aggression in Kuwait.
Some Khoja Ismailis had originally settled in the interior or in up-
country, later they moved to Karachi. Few Khoja families are also found
in Gwadar, Pasni, Ormarah, Islamabad and Lahore. In the early period of
Pakistan, they used to speak Kutchhi (a dialect), Gujraati and Sindhi but
now they have mostly adopted Urdu as their first language. Recent
generation is more comfortable with Urdu, rather than with Kutchhi or
Gujraati. Some Khojas gentry, particularly living in the affluent areas of
Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad are competent in spoken English.
However, in rural Sindh, Ismailis prefer to speak Sindhi as their first
language and Urdu stands as a second language. In Sindh, they slightly
change the word Khoja to Khawaja.
Initially Khojas were business people but now the new
generation is moving towards various professions, mostly engaged in the

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institutions of Aga Khan Development Network. In the fifties and sixties,

they occupied all top leadership positions in the Ismaili community. The
Khojas are urbanized and love to live mainly in walled-colonies scattered
all over Pakistan. They have constructed a number of residential societies
in various cities of Pakistan, the biggest one is the Karimabad colony in
Karachi, built in 1960s followed by other housing societies. Within the
boundaries of the societies, they have community institutions such as
jamatkhana, religious education centre, health centre, scouting and girls
guides etc.

Momnas
Momnas (a misnomer from the Arabic word ‘momin’) is a small segment
of Ismaili community of Pakistan. As per traditions, an Ismaili dai
named Syed Imam Shah gave them the name, Momnas, in Indian state of
Gujarat centuries ago.15 They were originally centered in Sidhpur, but
later moved to major cities of India. After 1947, some of them made their
way to Pakistan and mostly settled in Hyderabad and Karachi. Within
Ismailis, the Momnas are introvert, not easily mixing with the rest of the
community. Economically majority of them are well off and contribute
to uplift the weaker sections of their segment. They have established
many housing estates, hotels and dairy business through cooperative
farming and are exemplary for the other segments of the community.

Khyber Jamat
The Khyber Jamat is a recent addition to the Ismaili community of
Pakistan. The Ismaili missionary activities never come to a halt in any
period of history. At times, missionaries have worked under an
institutional umbrella, educating the community members as well as
winning new converts. While on other occasions, they have worked
without the institutional umbrella, out of their personal zeal and with a
sense of service for the community. Sometimes the mission activities had
to slow down due to the sensitivity of the situation, while at times, it
gained momentum. Similarly at times, it had to work in a clandestine
manner, while at other times it performed its mission more openly.
After the creation of Pakistan, few Ismaili missionaries, notably
Bhagat Pirbhai (d. 1973) and his successor Kassimali Badinwala
(d.1976) and some other well-wishers were active in converting local
Hindus in lower Sindh. Their services bore fruit in the late 1960s when a
few hundred people belonging to Hindu sub-castes Bheel and Koli

15
Zawahir Moir, Tarikh-e-Aaimah-e-Ismailia (Urdu), (Karachi: The Ismailia
Association for Pakistan, 1983).

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embraced Islam out of which about one hundred were the residents of the
Khyber village in district Hala (Sindh) and about two hundred were
scattered in other areas. All of them were inter-related through marriages.
The pattern of conversion differed from area to area; however,
dedication, commitment and self-sacrifice of the missionaries played a
vital role. Initially this segment of the community was named as new
Khyber Ismaili Jamat. Khyber being the name of the village. Later a plan
was chalked out to absorb the novice in to the mainstream.
The Khyber village later became a strong Ismaili colony. The
missionaries approached the institutions for patronage. A jamatkhana
was established in the village and was officially inaugurated by the then
Sindh Minister for Education, Pyar Ali Allana, in March 1976. Whereas,
other new converts remained scattered in lower Sindh for a much longer
period. They had no centre for collective gatherings or for offering
supplications, nor any access to other institutions of social welfare,
education, health etc. The well-wishers of these new converts formed a
committee named Khyber Welfare Committee to look after them. They
selected a few teenage boys from the new converts for training them as
missionaries. The committee hired the services of an experienced
missionary (late Missionary P.B. Haji) to impart religious and secular
education to these teenage boys. Later, these boys became missionaries
and, in 1984, they were appointed by the then Ismailia Association
(presently ITREB) for rendering services to the community.
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, these scattered Ismailis were
rehabilitated in newly established colonies at Tando Allah Yar
(Rahimabad and Shah Ali colonies) and Hyderabad (Alyabad colony at
Hala Road). All community institutions started providing them support
through establishing the schools, health centres and other welfare
organizations for the community. They are now regarded as an integral
part of the Ismaili community, though culturally they still have some
Hindu elements in their daily lives. They have connections with their
Hindu relatives and, at times, they establish marital relations with them.
The old Ismaili Jamat of Sindh has not yet been able to establish any
kind of social or marital relations with them. The volunteers of the
established Ismaili community of Sindh usually extend all kind of help to
the new community but the stage of establishing marital relations with
them still seems distant.

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Ismaili Community in Pakistan: Its Doctrines… 103

Shamsi
The Ismailis of Punjab are known as Shamsi, being the followers of
Ismaili Pir Shams Subzwari.16 While other Punjabi Ismailis were semi-
converted (guptis) who made their way to Islam in early 20th century on
the special directives of the Aga Khan-III, the 48th Ismaili Imam. They
are scattered all over Punjab and are mostly engaged in jewelry business.
Before Pakistan, a number of Ismaili families of Punjab moved towards
the frontier and western edge of Punjab and established themselves on
sound economic footings. They had jamatkhanas at Hazro, Mardan,
Ghari Kapurah, Tarbellah and Ghazi. These became flourishing centres
and mission activities were in full swing. However, after independence,
the new rising wind of radicalization did not favour these Ismailis. They
faced acute pressure from hostile anti-Ismaili forces. Besides, there was
also slackness on the part of Ismaili dawa mission in these areas, and the
mission headquarters in Karachi did not respond to the situation nor
promptly address the local needs. Consequently, slowly and gradually,
these centres dried out and number of Ismaili families drifted away from
the mainstream of the Ismaili community. At present, one rarely finds
any staunch Ismaili in these areas.
At the outset, the Punjabi Ismailis felt that the central institutions
at Karachi have not responded to their needs. In 1957 when the 48th
Imam (Aga Khan-III) passed away and his grandson Karim (Aga Khan-
IV) became the 49th Imam of the community, a small section of Punjabi
Ismailis, consisting of a few families under the leadership of Dr.Aziz Ali
Chinoiti, did not accept the Imamat of Prince Karim, but preferred his
father Prince Ali S. Khan for the Imamat. Thus, it led to schism, creating
a fissure in Pakistani Ismaili Jamat. The top-leadership of the community
tried its best to avoid the schism by convincing these families. However,
after the sudden death of Prince Ali S. Khan in a car accident in May
1960, they switched their allegiance to his younger son Prince Amyn
who, during his visit to Pakistan in 1974 clearly mentioned in Urdu that
he is not the Imam, but his elder brother Karim is the right Imam. Due to
continuous efforts, some of the members of these families made their
way back and rejoined the mainstream, while others turned towards
Sunni Islam.
Realizing the fact that the dawa mission has suffered serious
setbacks in Punjab, and cognizant of local demands, the central ITREB
headquarters of Karachi, incharge of dawa mission, under the directions

16
A. Nanji, The Nizari Ismaili Traditions in Hindi and Sind (New York:
Caravan Books, 1978), p.91.

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of Ashique Ali Hussain,17 undertook a training programme to train local

human resources at Lahore in early 1980s. Fifteen youths were thus
trained to address local needs. On completion of their training, this
human resourse has tried its utmost to serve the local needs but the lack
of vigor and support from the leadership has de-motivated them.
During the visit of the Aga Khan-IV to Punjab in 1987, the local
Punjabi Ismailis put several petitions before him requesting for clarity of
basic concepts, seeking material help from the institutions to address the
educational, health and unemployment problems. It was made clear by
the Aga Khan-IV to the top-leadership that much is to be done in Punjab
so that the institutions work more effectively.
Realizing local needs, some Khoja members of the south came
forward to address the problem of unemployment by establishing their
bases in Punjab so as to support local Punjabi Ismailis. In this
connection, the example of Farishta Group is worth mentioning which
established number of industries in Punjab. This group has also
established the Soneri Bank in Punjab where it has absorbed a number of
Punjabi Ismaili youth in its network. The Aga Khan Education Services
(AKES) started establishing schools in various cities where population of
the Punjabi Ismailis is substantial. They have established the Aga Khan
School at Hafizabad in 1990s and establishment of other schools at
Multan and Sialkot is in the pipeline. Similarly, new jamatkhana
buildings have recently been constructed in number of cities like
Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Sialkot, Sargodha and Hafizabad etc. to fulfil the
long-standing demands of local Punjabi Ismailis. Within the Punjab,
local Ismailis have failed to find sound, able and dedicated leadership of
their own. The Khojas have taken the lead in their areas while the native
leadership has given negligible attention to the social and general
developmental needs of the community.

Badakshani
The Ismailis of Northern Areas of Pakistan and district Chitral in NWFP
are commonly known as Badakshanis, as these areas were parts of
Badakshan in the past. They affiliate themselves to the dawa system run
under the name of an Ismaili dai Syyedna Hakim Nasir Khusrow (1004-
1088). Presently, the whole Northern Areas consist of five districts i.e.
Gilgit (the headquarters), Ghizar, Diamer, Baltistan and Ghanche. Out of
which two districts namely Gilgit and Ghizar have a majority of Ismailis.
The heated political debates currently raging about the status of the

17
Mr. Ashique Ali H. Hussain was the President of Ismaili Association of
Pakistan, now called ITREB, during 1980-1984.

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Ismaili Community in Pakistan: Its Doctrines… 105

Northern Areas are in most cases rooted in the area’s turbulent history. In
fact, locals to substantiate their point of view often invoke history, but
most people outside the Northern Areas are completely ignorant of the
political and social developments, which have unfolded here over the last
sixty years. The area’s geographical seclusion has meant that it had to
weather its travails in isolation.
The Ismailis community, the main component of Northern
Areas, is visible in every sphere of life. The majority of Ismailis speak
Shina, which is prevalent in the southern part of the region. This area is
locally called Shinaiki. While in the northern part of the region i.e. in
Hunza, Nagar and parts of Yasin, Gupis, the Ismailis speak Burushaski,
which is one of the remaining linguistic puzzles of the world yet to be
solved. It is spoken by less than 1,00,000 people of the north and shows
no resemblance to any other known language. Still further north in
Hunza, in the villages of Gojal and Gulmit, are settled Wakhi-speaking
immigrants from Wakhan 200 years ago. The Ismailis of Punial,
Iskoman, Gupis and Yasin claim themselves to be Sayyids, linking direct
descent from the Holy Prophet (PBUH) while Hunzaite Ismailis claim no
such background
According to Ismaili record, the Imams have always maintained
contacts with the Ismailis of the Northern Areas. During the last century,
the Aga Khan-III sent his emissary named Subz Ali to the Northern
Areas with certain guidelines in 1923.18 The local community followed
the same guidelines till 1950. In the earlier period, the Ismailis of the
Northern Areas were deprived of many social and economic facilities.
There was no concept of formal education. In 1946, on the occasion of
the diamond jubilee commemoration ceremony of Aga Khan-III, held at
Bombay, the Aga Khan granted a delegation from the Northern Areas a
special audience. He directed a member of the delegation, Qadaratullah
Baig, to establish schools in the Northern Areas. He also approved a
monetary grant out of jubilee funds. Thereafter, a number of schools
known as DJ schools were established which are still functioning. Again
in 1950s, the Aga Khan-III granted an audience to the leaders of the
Northern Areas community, wherein he strictly directed to avoid the use
of narcotics and emphasised the importance of education. A diamond
jubliee boarding was established in Gilgit to facilitate the students of
other valleys. A religious teacher (Syed Muniruddin Shagnani) was sent
from Karachi to the Northern Areas to start religious education at
community level. He established an institution known as Darul Iblaagh

18
The Great Ismaili Heroes (Karachi: HSH Prince Aly S. Khan Religious
Night School, 1973), p.104.

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in Gilgit for religious teaching. In 1951, on the occasion of the second

visit of Aga Khan-III to Pakistan, he made the Mir of Hunza his special
representative for the entire Northern Areas including the valleys of
Gilgit, Punial, Iskoman, Gupis and Yasin.
In October 1960, Aga Khan-IV paid an official visit to the
Northern Areas that ushered a new chapter in the history of the local
Ismaili community. During 1960s, the new Arabic dua was also
introduced in the Northern Areas. In 1969, Aga Khan-IV officially
ordained a constitution for the Northern Areas, appointing Supreme
Council of Central Asia. The Mir of Hunza, Mir Jamal Khan, was the
First President of the Council, while Syed Karam Ali Shah was the Vice
President and Haji Qudratullah Baig was the Secretary of the Council.
Along with the Council, the appointment of mukhi and kamadia was also
introduced in the Northern Areas for the first time in history; they were
assigned the leading role in religious ceremonies of the Northern Areas,
before that, the most senior khalifa used to lead the prayer.
This system of government remained in effect till the early
seventies when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto introduced drastic changes. He
abolished the princely states, the harsh Frontier Criminal Regulations
(FCR) and the system of forced labour. In a special cabinet meeting, held
on 13 October 1973, it was decided that the Northern Areas should be
awarded a separate council and the area’s status should be raised to that
of a province within ten years. And this status quo was maintained for
two decades until Benazir Bhutto, in her term announced her package of
reforms known as the Northern Areas Council Legal Framework Order,
1994. This order repeals and replaces an order by the same name passed
in 1975. In 1974, when the Government of Pakistan abolished the state of
Hunza and merged the area with the rest of Pakistan, the Federal Council
of Central Asia was also abolished. It was merged with the Federal
Council of Pakistan.
In 1974, the Ismailia Association of Pakistan (presently ITREB)
conducted a survey to start a Teachers’ Religious Education Programme
for North. This programme was launched in 1975 and is known as Guide
Training Programme. Thereafter, a full-fledged programme known as
Manpower Training Project (MTP) was launched in Karachi on 5
January 1976 in which the young of the Northern Areas were also
selected to participate. This was for imparting specialized training to 25
young graduates and postgraduates. On successful completion of the
prescribed two-year study course, the students were to be absorbed
within ITREB as waezeen, research associates and administrative staff
etc. to meet the increasing needs of the community. However, upon

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completion of the project, the number of graduates did not find the
environment conducive, therefore, they left the association forever.19
The Ismaili youth of the area are bilingual and to some extent,
trilingual. In addition to their mother tongue, every young person can
manage some Shina and Urdu as well, which is the only medium used in
the schools of Northern Areas. Since 1987, there is mushrooming growth
of English medium schools, which indicates the future trend of Ismailis,
who are particularly keen to learn English.
Certain districts of the Northern Areas are predominantly Ismaili
with strong position in business and commerce. In the beginning
relations between the Ismailis and the other locals were by no means
friendly; mutual jealousy and rivalry were more religious than personal.
The locals used to consider Ismailis outcasts; they did not use the meat of
animals slaughtered by Ismailis nor consume the food cooked by them.
However, during the last sixty years, the Aga Khan Development
Network institutions have tried to build better understanding of Ismailis
among their neighbors. The Ismails have organized themselves by
developing institutions of education, health care, and economic and
social upliftment. They have initiated many schemes of outreach,
inviting members of sister communities to participate in their social
functions. This has at least removed misconceptions amongst the sister
communities.

Ismailis in Chitral
Chitral is one of the major districts of Pakistan where one can find
sizeable number of Ismailis, belonging to Badakshani tradition of
Syyedna Hakim Nasir Khusrow. Chitral, at the beginning of twentieth
century, was an independent state ruled by Katur dynasty. The rulers
were known as Mahatir, they were Sunni by faith while the area has
mixed population, some are Kalash, other are Muslim Sunnis and Shia
Ismailis. The Shia Ismailis mostly live in upper Chitral areas like Mastuj,
Torkho, Mulkho while in lower Chitral, the tehsil Lutkow has sufficient
number of Ismailis. They speak Khowar language. While few thousand
Ismailis live in Drosh area of Chitral (at Madaklash), speak Persian and
some other Ismailis in Brogal area speak Wakhi. The Katur rulers were
not friendly with Ismailis on religious grounds. They had banned Ismailis
from practicing their faith collectively; not allowing them to build their
prayer houses i.e. jamatkhanas. Suspicions and doubts were always on
the rise and there were many uprisings against the rulers particularly in
the year 1914 and 1926. The rulers compelled local Ismaili leadership

19
A community publication, Ismaili Bulletin, September 1976.

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many a time to go underground or on forced migration. The local

Ismailis commonly known as mowlai and the saadaats were their local
leaders. They used to lead them in religious and social matters, these
leaders include Syedna Shah Nawaz, Shah Bulbul Shah, Haji Sifayat
Shah Sangoghar, Syed Bulbul Shah Zahaj Jinalkoch.
In 1923, the Aga Khan-III emissary named Subzali visited
Chitral as a part of his Central Asian tour under the instructions of Aga
Khan-III. He brought some guidelines with him known in Chitral as
Qaeda-e-Jadid (new rules). He emphasized during his visit to Chitral to
establish jamatkhanas and dispatch the maal-e-Imam through the
councils. Though these instructions were not fully implemented because
of political situation but some efforts were made in these directions. A
local missionary, Syed Moallim Shah Harchin, supported these
guidelines, as a result of which he was forced to leave Chitral. He went
into exile to neighboring state of Ghizer where he died in 1941. Again in
1926, the Aga Khan-III sent a taliqa urging Ismailis of Chitral that if
construction of jamatkhanas was not impossible, then they should
practice individually and if possible organize prayers by joining at least
two or three persons. This continued up to 1950. However, at the end of
the Mahatir Malik Muzaffer’s period, the construction of jamatkhanas
started on a limited scale.
In his instructions, the Aga Khan-III was most emphatic about
educating children, which was totally impossible for Ismailis during
Mahatir’s rule in Chitral. On his accession to the throne in 1936 Mahatir
Nasirul Mulk immediately established the first ever government school
in Chitral city. But the Ismailis did not gain any benefit as they lived
mostly in the rural areas of Chitral. It was impossible to send the children
to the newly established school as there was no hostel arrangement in the
city. However, Ismailis founded a society with the name of Anjuman-e-
Tarqi-e-Talim for educating their children. The society was patronized
by Aga Abdul Majid Khan, incharge of Chitral affairs in Bombay – the
headquarter of Ismaili Imamat during Aga Khan-III period. He sent a
donation of one thousand books along with a few thousand rupees for
paying stipends to teachers and office bearers of the society.
In 1946, the Ismailis all over India celebrated the diamond
jubilee of their Imam in Bombay. On that occasion, Aga Khan-III
sanctioned a special grant for educational development in Chitral. This
grant remained unutilized as the ruler did not allow the establishment of
diamond jubilee schools in Chitral.
After some time, the local Ismaili leaders thought of
establishing an educational centre within Chitral city. Aga Khan-III
donated a fund amounting to Rs. 20,000 for educational purpose, while

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the Anjuman-e-Tarqi-e-Talim also raised funds at the local level and

founded an Ismaili musafir khana in Chitral in 1954. This musafir khana
later served not only as educational centre for Ismaili students of Chitral
but also served as a platform for local Ismaili leaders to discuss
community issues. Students from far flung rural areas used to stay there
to continue their education up to middle level in the city. The musafir
khana was renamed afterwards as Ismailia Centre and then as Ismaili
Hostel. It played a pivotal role in the lives of Ismailis. It also provided a
meeting point for Ismaili leadership and a general-contact point for inter-
Chitrali and intra-Chitrali Ismailis. This hostel was burned to ashes in
sectarian riots during 1982.

Activities of IAP (presently ITREB) in Chitral

The Ismailia Association for Pakistan (IAP) was somewhat late in
entering Chitral for educational activities. Chitral was being looked after
by the hereditary system of pirs and khalifas, whom the Imam used to
address as mu’allim-e-sadiq (true teacher). In 1951, the Aga Khan-III
constituted a Council for Central Asia under the presidentship of Mir of
Hunza and Pir Syed Jamal Ali Shah was made incharge for Ghizar and
Chitral areas as the vice president. The already constituted local councils
were tackling local matters since 1920s. In 1958, a young group was
selected to function as religious teachers and waezeen within the local
Ismailis. A senior scholar of IAP, Jawad Al-Mascati trained them in
Karachi. Again in 1970s, the IAP trained few more candidates from
Chitral in Karachi for performing religious functions as
teachers/waezeen. In 1971 a two-year training programme was started at
local level in Booni. In January 1976 the IAP launched manpower
training programme in Karachi and few Chitrali students were also
accommodated in the programme. It also sent a candidate to IIS for its
graduate programme. In 1982, the IAP started a four-year full time
professional waezeen training in Chitral which was disturbed due to
sectarian riots and was shifted to Gilgit and Karachi. This programme
produced more than thirty professional teachers/waezeen in 1988 who
are still serving the community in Chitral.
The year 1969 was important in the sense that the Chitral state
was finally abolished and the area was merged with the rest of Pakistan.
The Government of Pakistan declared Chitral a district of NWFP, thus
the Katur dynasty rule in the Chitral that lasted for three hundred years
came to end. In the same year, the Aga Khan-IV also ordained a
constitution for the Ismaili community of Central Asia; thereby a
supreme council was constituted under the head of Mir of Hunza.
Previously the Mir was assigned the responsibility of tackling the affairs

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of Central Asia who was doing his job in coordination with Vazir Capt.
Amirali Karim of Karachi. Now with the enforcement of constitution, the
system of local councils and mukhi/ kamadia was formalized. The Aga
Khan-IV visited Chitral on his first ever visit in March 1976. He met his
followers at several places like Garam Chasma, Booni, Shotar and
Mastuj. With his visit the development of the area was started. Various
institutions of AKDN started their activities in Chitral aimed at
developing the basic structure on modern lines, though some of the
institutions like health and education were functioning since long but,
after 1976, their activities took a fillip.

Afghan Ismailis in Pakistan

Thousands of Ismailis living in Pakistan are originally from Afghanistan.
They were displaced due to internal conflict, turmoil and civil war
between different Afghan factions during the last two decades. It is said
that in Afghanistan there are number of Ismaili segments, some
belonging to the traditions of Syeddna Hakim Nasir-i-Khusrow, while
others link themselves with the tradition of Hassan-e-Sabah, an Ismaili
dai of eleven century AD.
The last twenty five years of Afghanistan have been
characterized by hardships, turmoil, displacements and other difficult
circumstances. People of Afghanistan were forced to leave their homes
and seek refugee in neighboring countries. A group of five Afghan
Ismaili students of the Kabul University, belonging to medical and
engineering faculties also left Kabul for Pakistan, and met top-Ismaili
leadership. The leadership incorporated them in a religious educational
programme, jointly launched by the Ismailia Associations for Pakistan
and India, in June 1981, known as ‘Joint waezeen Training Programme’.
They received training in various religious and social disciplines, which
had no relevance to their early fields of study i.e. medical and
engineering. After training, they left Pakistan, one after the other, for the
West. This was the starting point of Afghan Ismailis leaving their native
land for Pakistan. After that, thousands of Afghan Ismailis have come to
Pakistan. In contrast to early groups who usually came from Kabul, in
the 1990s, due to Talibanization, the Ismailis came from all other areas,
particularly from northern provinces of Afghanistan such as Parwaan,
Baghlaan and Samanghan etc. The surge of refugees was the highest
when an Ismaili stronghold at Phule Khumri fell to Taliban. There they
massacred number of Ismailis compelling others to leave their native
land.
A group of 30 Ismaili families, belonging to Jalalabad came to
Rawalpindi in the early 1990s. They were garbage collectors or zabaleen.

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They spread throughout the length and breadth of the city collecting
garbage from dawn to dusk. The local Ismailis helped in educating them.
In the end these Jalalabadis were sent to Canada where some Canadian
Ismaili families gave a commitment of supporting them in the initial
period of their resettlement.
In 1996, to avoid any untoward incident, the Ismaili management
started a process of screening to ascertain refugees status. It deputed
scholars to interview the incoming refugees about their faith, tradition,
area of originality etc. Those who passed through this screening process
were sent either to Rawalpindi or Karachi where other community
organisations were actively helping them settle in the area. They were
made to stay in camps for at least three months, where Focus, a
humanitarian organisation, established by the community under Aga
Khan Development Network, provided food, medicines and clothing.
During their three months stay in camps, they were asked to find suitable
housing and employment within the city for which the Social Welfare
Board (SWB) paid three months rent and subsistence allowance etc.
There were many transit camps in Karachi where Afghans were given
temporary accommodation.
The influx of Afghans continued for a longtime and the Ismaili
community of Pakistan by and large tried to support their displaced
brethrens even though their own economic conditions were not always
up to the mark. The Afghans have a different temperament. Sometimes,
they reacted harshly, but the Ismaili leadership made it clear to entire
local resident Ismaili community that their Afghan brethrens have been
members of the destabilized society ever since their birth. For the past
twenty years, they have seen nothing but guns so they have to make
greater efforts. The community’s response has been overwhelming. A
number of Khoja Ismailis have accommodated them, they have engaged
them in their businesses, and professions and even Afghan women have
been provided job etc. to ease their financial difficulties. The Afghan
school going children were admitted in various community-based
schools. The young were trained in various skills. The ITREB, Pakistan,
has also been actively imparting religious education to the Afghan
children. It has encouraged young educated Afghan Ismailis to serve
their brethrens on an honorary basis. In the whole process of educating
Afghan Ismailis, the ITREB is mindful of the cultural diversity of the
Afghan vis-à-vis Pakistani Ismailis.
The situation of Afghanistan, after US invasion in 2001, has
changed. The Focus and other Ismaili institutions made arrangement for
majority of Afghan Ismailis to return. However, a good number of

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Afghan did not return. They have made Pakistan their home and are
trying to adjust themselves with the local Ismailis.

Conclusion
The present day Ismaili community of Pakistan, though segmented
within, is unified under the central leadership of the hereditary Imamat. It
has transformed itself into modern and progressive force without
disregarding the traditional values. It is well-educated, economically
sound and had built connections with their brethrens in the developed
world. It has nurtured the culture of philanthropy by establishing wide
range of institutions of international standard in Pakistan, aimed at
translating the Islamic values into practice. It is a partner in progress and
wants to contribute whatever it has learnt over the past century towards
the goal of progressive Pakistan.

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