Taqi Usmani
Justice (retd) Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani is a world renowned Islamic Scholar of Pakistan and has held a number of positions in boards of prestigious Islamic institutions. Mr. Taqi Usmani got his “Takhassus” degree in Islamic education, equivalent to PhD, from Darul 'Uloom Karachi in 1961. He also holds a Master’s degree from Punjab University in Arabic Literature and a bachelor of laws (LLB) degree from Karachi University.
Mufti Taqi Usmani served as a judge on the Shariah Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan from 1982 to 2002 and as a judge of the Federal Shariah Court of Pakistan from 1980 to 1982. He has written numerous books in Arabic, Urdu and English on vital Islamic topics in addition to a large number of articles on Islamic banking and finance published in many journals and magazines.
Arguably his most important work in Arabic is his Takmilat Fath al-Mulhim, in which he completed in six volumes the commentary of Allama Shabbir Usmani on Sahih Muslim. Imam Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari regarded Allama Shabbir Usmani's incomplete commentary as the very best commentary on Sahih Muslim, bar none, and many a scholar (including Sayyid Abu'l Hasan Ali Nadwi) have affirmed that Mufti Taqi Usmani's Takmila is even better. This work explains the hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad and also deals with numerous modern and contemporary issues with great mastery and authority.
His outstanding works in English include An Introduction to Islamic Finance, Historic Judgment on Interest, and the eight-volume English edition of the famous commentary of the Holy Qur'an, Ma'ariful Qur'an, originally compiled in Urdu by his father, Mufti Muhammad Shafi'. The latter work could be considered to be the best of the available English commentaries of the Qur'an, as Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and others state. He continues to teach Sahih al-Bukhari in Darul Uloom Karachi, and is also known for his Islahi Khutbat (sermons educating Muslim to become better human beings). He was a key member of the team of scholars that helped declare the Qadiani sect as non-Muslims by Pakistan's National Assembly during the era of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in the 1970s.
In March 2004, United Arab Emirates Vice-President and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum presented an award to Usmani in recognition of his lifetime service and achievement in Islamic finance during the annual International Islamic Finance Forum (IIFF) in Dubai, one of the largest event in Islamic finance.
Membership
Muhammad Taqi Usmani presently is a member of the following organizations:
- International Islamic Fiqh Academy, Jeddah (Permanent member)
- Darul 'Uloom Karachi, Karachi (Vice President)
- Accounting and Auditing Organization of Islamic Financial Institutions, Bahrain. (Chairman of Shariah Standard Council)
- Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA), Bahrain (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- Amana Investments Limited, Sri Lanka. (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, UAE. (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- Meezan Bank Ltd, Pakistan. (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- Islamic Bank of Britain plc,UK (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- HSBC Amanah Finance, Dubai.
- BankIslami Pakistan Limited, Pakistan. (Chairman of Shariah Board)
- Jamiat ul-Ulama USA, USA.
You can listen to his audio lectures in Urdu from