Syed Zafar Mahmood

Syed Zafar Mahmood, Ph.D. is an Indian Civil-Servant and former 'Officer on Special Duty' for the Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.[1] On March 9, 2005 the Prime Minister appointed the 'Sachar Committee' to study the "social, economic and educational status" of India's minority Muslim community.[2][3] Dr. Mahmood worked with the Sachar Committee to submit its report to the Government of India within two years on November 17, 2006.[4][5] He has since given numerous talks in and outside India on the topic. In his presentations at Case Western Reserve University and Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government he has commented on the steps forward to bridge the economic, social and educational divide of Indian Muslims.[6]

Syed Zafar Mahmood
Born8 June 1951
EducationGraduated from Aligarh Muslim University
OccupationCivil Servant, Social Activist
Home townBahraich
Parent(s)Syed Mahmood Hasan (Alig) Advocate
RelativesTahir Mahmood (brother)

During President George W. Bush's 2006 visit to India, the U.S. President convened an interfaith meeting in New Delhi and Dr. Mahmood was one of the representatives of Indian Muslims.[7]

Education

Dr. Mahmood was educated at Aligarh Muslim University where he earned B.Sc. (Honours) in Physics, M.S. in Political Science, and Ph.D. in Public Administration.[6]

Non-Governmental Work

Dr. Mahmood is also the founder of three non-profit organizations: Zakat Foundation of India,[8] Interfaith Coalition for Peace[9] and God's Grace Foundation.[10]

Of note, Zakat Foundation of India (founded in 1997) is a non-profit which runs an orphanage for victims of the 2002 Gujarat riots in partnership with USA's One World Children's Fund.[11] The Foundation recently was in the news for adopting the family of the late 11-year-old Shanno Khan.[12] Dr.Mahmood's work in regard to these organizations has also been featured on CNN [13] and America's National Public Radio (NPR).[14] In September 2009, ZFI filed a 'Right To Information' application to question why the Government had rejected the Sachar Committee recommendations to ensure proper governance of Wakf properties.[15]

On June 29, 2013 Dr. Mahmood was invited as a speaker to 'Young India Conclave' in Gandhinagar, Gujarat along with the state's Chief Minister Sri Narendra Modi.[16] Dr. Mahmood challenged the Chief Minister on his poor records towards Muslims,[17][18][19][20] highlighting anti-Muslim rhetoric on the BJP website,[21] as well as policies that the BJP would need to adopt to appeal to Indian Muslim voters.[22]

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References
  1. Page (iv) - "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-07-04. Retrieved 2010-06-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Page (v) - "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-07-04. Retrieved 2010-06-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. Somini Sengupta (2006-11-29). "Report Shows Muslims Near Bottom of Social Ladder". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  4. "News18.com: CNN News18 Latest News, Breaking News India, Current News Headlines". Ibnlive.in.com. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  5. "India awakens to its other pariahs: Muslims". CSMonitor.com. 2007-01-04. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  6. "Secular Democracy- India's Strength: A Case Study of the Sachar Report and the Interfaith Movement". Harvard - Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  7. "Bush will hold inter-faith meeting after PM lunch". Indianexpress.com. 2006-03-02. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  8. "Zakat Foundation of India". Zakatindia.org. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  9. "Interfaith Coalition For Peace - Let us seek mutual help and friendship and stand firm in constancy and patient perseverance, ICP India, ICP, Interfaith Society, Interfaith India, Interfaith Foundation". Icpindia.org. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  10. http://www.godgraces.org
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-06-05. Retrieved 2014-06-01.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. "Archive News". The Hindu. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  13. "Video News". CNN. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  14. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-25. Retrieved 2011-02-27.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-09-06. Retrieved 2009-09-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  16. "Modi's youth conclave in Gandhinagar includes Islamic scholars : Gujarat, News - India Today". Indiatoday.intoday.in. 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  17. "At Modi's Muslim outreach, speaker flays BJP". The Hindu. 2013-06-30. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  18. "I knew why I was called, but wanted to challenge Modi and BJP: Zafar Mahmood". TwoCircles.net. 2013-06-29. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  19. http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=802293
  20. "India News, Latest Sports, Bollywood, World, Business & Politics News". Times of India. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  21. Dr. Mahmood's PowerPoint slides from June 29, 2013 Gujarat presentation to Sri Modi: http://www.zakatindia.org/Files/S.%20Zafar%20Mahmood%20talk%20-%20Ahmedabad%20June%2029%202013.pdf
  22. "CM watches slide show on 2002 riots, says point taken". Indian Express. 2013-06-30. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
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