Srinagar, Sep 10: In a move that has sent the academic circles at the Valley’s highest seat of learning into tizzy, Kashmir’s chief cleric and senior separatist leader Dr Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has registered himself as a doctorate scholar to receive the award from the President of India or the Vice-President at the upcoming 18th Annual Convocation of the University of Kashmir scheduled on 18th of this month.
According to official documents, copy of which is with Greater Kashmir, Dr Umar, who is the chairman of the Hurriyat Conference (M), figures at No 1 in the list of Ph.D scholars from the Department of Islamic Studies who shall receive the award (a gold medal) at the hands of either the President Pranab Mukarjee or the Vice-President Muhammad Hamid Ansari. The Mirwaiz’s Convocation registration number is 498-NOC-92 Dated 30-8-2012.
While Dr Umar’s registration for the Convocation has triggered suspense at the University of Kashmir in view of his political lineages and the presence of President or Vice-President at the award ceremony, the academic circles have however kept the figures crossed on whether the senior separatist leader, who completed his doctorate in 2010, would make it to the Convocation or not after registering himself for the mega event.
“The Mirwaiz’s registration for the Convocation award-ceremony has certainly put some spotlight on the event. It is not his being a scholar that has triggered some suspense in the academic fraternity but his political ideology would certainly make everyone focus on whether he would make it to the award ceremony or not,” said a KU academic, insisting not to be named. “If Mirwaiz has registered himself for the Convocation, some degree of thought would have certainly gone into it.”
Pertinently, Dr Umar was in October 2010 conferred with doctorate for his thesis based on a book on political thought in Islam by the famous saint Mir Syed Ali Hamdani (RA), popularly known as Amir-e-Kabir.
The doctorate was conferred upon Mirwaiz for his thesis ‘Mir Syed Ali Hamdani’s Dhakriratul Muluk: An Annotation and Translation’. An alumni of missionary Burn Hall School, Mirwaiz did his graduation in 1998 with Political Science and English Literature as subjects. Simultaneously, he completed his Moulvi-Fazil and Moulvi Alim, the degrees mandatory for a priest.  In 2002, he did his M.Phil.
After being conferred with the degree, Mirwaiz had told this newspaper that the book is a complete guide for governing the Islamic State. “The book is old but is relevant in the present times. It gives us the highest vision of the Islamic State. I will try to draw relevant paradigms from the book and utilize them whenever necessary for the ongoing movement,” he had said. “The book is political theory and ethical doctrine for the kings. All I can say is that it is a must read for the rulers who believe in effective governance and giving justice to people.”

Lastupdate on : Mon, 10 Sep 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 10 Sep 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 11 Sep 2012 00:00:00 IST