Sunni Bohra

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Bohra

Regions with significant populations

India
USA
Pakistan
United Kingdom
South Africa
United Arab Emirates

Languages

Religion

Islam

Related ethnic groups

Sunni Vhora (Vohra)

Sunni Vahoras or Sunni Bohras (Arabic: ‫()​ﺳﻨﯽ ﺑﻮ ﺮ‬also Jafari Bohras or Patani Bohras) are
a community from the state of Gujarat in India. Sharing a large number of cultural similarities
with the Dawoodi Bohras, they are often confused with that community. The community in
Pakistan uses the surname "Vohra" and not Bohra and are commonly known as Sunni Vhoras.
A very small number of families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vohra" as their
surname. Another common surname is Patel. Some Vohra community lives in Saurashtra call
Kathiawaar Sunni Vohra mainly lives at Una Diu Delwada Junagadh Veraval Patan Jetpur
Mangrol Porbandar and Pakistan at Karachi.

An overwhelming majority of the Gujarati-speaking Vohra community of Pakistan lives in the

port city of Karachi in Sindh province. They are well organized and carry out their activities
through their own Karachi-based association named Charotar Muslim Anjuman, Charotar being
the name of the region in the Indian state of Gujarat where their ancestors are originally from.

History and distribution

In the 15th century, there was schism in Bohra community of Patan, Gujarat as large number
converted from Mustaali Ismaili to Hanafi Sunni fiqh. The leader of this conversion movement
to Sunni was Jafar Patani, himself a Bohra convert to Sunni Islam. Thus this new group is
known as Jafari Bohras and Patani Bohras. In 1538, Syed Jafar Ahmad Shirazi, a missionary
from Sindh, convinced Patani Bohras to cease social relations with Ismaili Bohras. This
resulted in a large conversion, almost 80%, from Shia Ismaili Fiqh to Sunni Hanafi Fiqh.[1][2]

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See also
Gujarati Muslims
Vora Patel

2/18
Gujarati Muslims
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gujarati_Muslims

Regions with significant populations

India • Pakistan • United Kingdom • Canada • South Africa • Kenya • Tanzania • Uganda • United Arab
Emirates • Madagascar

Languages

Gujarati • Urdu • Kutchi [1]

Religion

Sunni, Shia, Shia Ismaili, Sufism

Related ethnic groups

Gujarati people • Muslims of Uttar Pradesh • Rajasthani Muslims • Hyderabadi Muslims • Indo Aryans •
Muhajirs • Pakistani people • Sindhis • Jats • Muslim Keralites • Lohanas • Rajputs

Gujarati Muslim
ુજરાતી ુસલમાન

The term Gujarati Muslims (Gujarati: ુજરાતી ુસલમાનો, Urdu: ‫ )​ ﮔﺠﺮاﺗﯽ ﻣﺴﻠﻤﺎن‬is usually used to
signify an Indian Muslim from the state of Gujarat in North-western coast of India. Gujarati
Muslims are very prominent in industry and medium-sized businesses, and there is a very large
Gujarati Muslim community in Mumbai.[2] Many members of this community migrated to
Pakistan in 1947 and have settled in Sindh province especially in Karachi, contributing to the
national welfare and economy of Pakistan.[3] Having earned a formidable accolade as some of
India's greatest seafaring merchants,[4] the centuries-old Gujarati diaspora is found scattered
throughout the Near East, Indian Ocean, and Southern Hemisphere regions everywhere in
between Africa and Japan with a notable presence in:[5] Hong Kong,[6] Britain, Portugal,
Réunion,[7] Oman,[8] Yemen,[9] Mozambique,[10] Zanzibar,[11] United Arab Emirates, Burma,[12]
Madagascar,[13] South Africa, Mauritius, Pakistan and East Africa.

According to the 2001 Census of India , the Gujarati Muslim population was 4,592,854, which is
9.064% of the total population of the state, by the side survey done on the basis of adhaar it is
showing the total Muslim population in Gujrat was 8,934,201, which is 13.28% however
significant numbers of Gujarati Muslims are found within the larger context of the Gujarati
diaspora that became established throughout all the inhabited continents of the world.[14]

Most Gujarati Muslims have Gujarati language as their mother tongue, but some communities
such as the Momin Ansari, Memons,[15] Gujarati Shaikh,[16][17] and others, have Urdu as their
mother tongue.[18]

The majority of Gujarati Muslims are Sunni, with a minority of heterodox Shi'ite groups.

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The Gujarati Muslims are further sub-divided into groups, such as the Sunni Vohra/Bohra,
Ismāʿīlī, Khoja, Dawoodi Bohra, Surti, Pathan people, Khatri, Ghanchi and Chhipa each with
their own customs and traditions.

Gujarati Muslims played a pivotal role in establishing Islam in Southeast Asia.[19]

History
Located in the westernmost portion of India, Gujarat includes the region of Kutch, Saurashtra,
and the territories between the rivers Banas and Damanganga. Islam came early to Gujarat,
with immigrant communities of Arab and Persian traders. Most came as traders as they did
before Islam and built a masjid during the times of Muhammad and other parts of the western
seacoast of India as early as the 8th Century C.E, spreading Islam soon as the religion gained
a foothold in the Arabian peninsula.[20] They were later joined by Persian traders from Greater
Iran.[21] Many of these early merchants were Ismaili Shia, both Mustaali and Nizari. They laid
the foundation of the Bohra and Khoja communities. In the early era however Gujarat was
ruled by the Valabhi dynasty. In the thirteenth century, the last Hindu ruler Karna, was defeated
by Alauddin Khalji, the Turkic Sultan of Dehli. This episode ushered a period of five centuries of
Muslim Turkic and Mughal rule, leading to a conversion of a number of Hindu Gujarati people
to Islam, and the creation of new communities such as the Molesalam and Miyana
communities.

In the sixteenth century, the Memon community immigrated from Sindh and settled in Kutch
and Kathiawar. While in Bharuch and Surat, a schism occurred among the Bohras, and a new
community of Sunni Bohras was created. Another Muslim sect, the Mahdawi also settled in
Gujarat, and led to the creation of the Tai community. [22] In 1593, the Mughal Emperor Akbar
conquered Gujarat, and incorporated Gujarat in the Mughal Empire. This period led to the
settlement of the Mughal community. A good many Sayyid and Shaikh families also are said to
have arrived during the period of Mughal rule. With the establishment of the Sufi Suhrawardi
and Chishti orders in Multan, Sind and Gujarat, pirs enjoyed state patronage. [23] At the same
time, the Muslims from various provinces such as Hyderabad Deccan, Kerala, Balochistan,
Sindh, Punjab, Gujarat, Kashmir and other parts of South Asia also moved to capitals of
Muslim empire in Delhi and Agra. After the death of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, in 1707,
Mughal rule began weaken after ruling for a century. Most of Gujarat fell to the Marathas, and
this period saw the dispersal of further Pathan and Baluch, who came as mercenaries and
were destroyed or defeated by the Marathas. Gujarat fell to British in the late 19th Century. [24]

Gujarati Muslim merchants played an historically important role in facilitating the Portuguese
discovery of "the East Indies",[25][26][27] in spreading and propagating Islam to the Far East,[28]
and in promoting the British discovery of Africa .[29] In Southeast Asia, Malays referred to the
Islamic elite among them by the noble title of adhirajas.[30] The Sufi trader, Shaikh Randeri
(Shaikh Raneri) was responsible for spreading Islam to Acheh in Indonesia.[31] Surti merchants

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in particular also pioneered the use of scientific concepts, and invented structural and
mechanical advances in technology for the nationbuilding of Mauritius,[32] such as introducing
hydro-electric power to the people of Mauritius.[33]

Jamat Bandi
Gujarati speaking Muslim society has a unique custom known as Jamat Bandi, literally
meaning communal solidarity.[34] This system is the traditional expression of communal
solidarity. It is designed to regulate the affairs of the community and apply sanctions against
infractions of the communal code. Almost all the main Gujarat communities, such as the
Ismāʿīlī, Khoja, Dawoodi Bohra, Chhipa, and Sunni Bohra have caste associations, known as
jamats. Social organization at the Jamat Bandi level varies from community to community. In
some communities, the Jamat simply runs a mosque and attached rest house, and a
madrasah. Some larger communities, such as the Khoja and Memon have developed
elaborate and highly formalized systems with written and registered constitutions. Their
organizations own large properties, undertake housing projects and schools, dispensaries and
weekly newspapers.

Communities
Historically, each of the Muslim communities are endogamous. Gujarati Muslims in the United
Kingdom have shown that endogamy remains important with the existence of matrimonial
services specifically dedicated to the Gujarati Muslim community [35] However, this is not the
case with Gujarati Muslim communities in the US, where marriages outside the community are
becoming increasingly common. This can be largely attributed to there being a much smaller
community in the US when compared to the size of the community in the UK.

The region of Kutch has always been historically distinct, with the Muslims there accounting
for about twenty percent of the population. This region is characterised by salt deserts, such
as the Rann of Kutch. Because of this landscape, the Kutch Muslims are Maldhari pastoral
nomads found in the Banni region of Kutch. Most of them are said to have originated in Sindh,
and speak a dialect of Kutchi which has many Sindhi loanwords. Major Maldhari communities
include the Jats, Halaypotra, Hingora, Hingorja, Juneja and Samma tribes. [36]

The Baloch Muslim community of Gujarat, who migrated from Balochistan on the invitation of
Emperor Aurangzeb, established a base of power with the Khadiya Darbar estate of Junagadh
formally started by Mohammad Hafez Khanji Baluch, who was awarded land for the traits of
excellence and bravery shown at his throne in Baluchistan. [37] Earlier Baloch settlers of Gujarat
came with Fateh Khan Baloch, who was given the jagirs and by Sultan Ahmad Shah II of
Gujarat.[38] Qadir Bukhsh Rind Baloch alias Kadu Makrani, a 19th-century archetypal hero of
Gujarat's Muslims, often remembered as the Robin Hood of the East, was born and brought up
in Makran, Balochistan and rose to become a skilled insurgent in Kathiawar fighting against
British imperialism.[39]

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The Gujarat coastline is also home to significant numbers of Siddi, otherwise known as Zanji
or Habshi, descendants of Africans e.g. Royal Habshis (Abyssinian aristocracy e.g. Siddi
Sayyid), or Bantu peoples from Southeast Africa that were brought to the Indian subcontinent
as slaves by the Portuguese and Arab merchants.[40] Siddis are primarily Sufi Muslims,
although some are Hindus and others Roman Catholic Christians.[41] Malik Ambar, a prominent
military figure in Indian history at large, remains a figure of veneration to the Siddis of Gujarat.

Bharuchi and Surti Muslims

There is historical evidence of Arabs and Persians settling along the Konkan-Gujarat coast as
early as the 9th, 8th and perhaps 7th century.[42] Arab traders landed at Ghogha (located just
across the narrow Gulf of Cambay from Bharuch/Surat) around the early seventh century and
built a masjid there facing Jeruselum.[43] Thus Gujarat has the oldest mosque in India built
between 624-626 C.E. by the Arabs who traded and stayed there. These Arabs and others who
settled in Bharuch and Surat were sailors, merchants and nakhudas, who belonged to various
South Arabian coastal tribes while others were from the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean, and
large numbers married local women adopting the local Gujarati language and customs over
time. [44][45][46]

Over the course of history, a number of famous Arab travelers, scholars, Sufi-saints and
geographers who visited India, have described the presence of thriving Arab-Muslim
communities scattered along the Konkan-Gujarat coast.[47] Suleiman of Basra who reached
Thana in 841 AD, observed that the Rashtrakuta kingdom which extended from Bharuch to
Chaul during his time, was on friendly terms with the Arabs, and Balhara kings appointed Arab
merchant princes as governors and administrators in their vast kingdom.[48][49][50] Ibn Hawqal,
a 10th-century Muslim Arab geographer and chronicler while on his travels observed that
mosques flourished in four cities of Gujarat that had Hindu kings, with mosques being found in
Cambay, Kutch, Saymur and Patan, alluding to an atmosphere where Muslim foreigners were
assimilated into the local milieu of medieval Gujarati societies.[51][52] His well-known Iranian
contemporary Estakhri, the Persian medieval geographer who traveled to Cambay and other
regions of Gujarat during the same period, echoed the words spoken by his predecessors
alongside his itineraries.[53] Al-Masudi, an Arab historian from Baghdad who was a descendant
of Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, a companion of Muhammad traveled to Gujarat in 918 C.E, and bore
written witness account that more than 10,000 Arab Muslims from Siraf (Persia) Madha in
Oman, Hadhramaut in Yemen, Basra, Baghdad, and other cities in the Middle East, had settled
in the seaport of Chamoor, a port close to Bharuch.[54][55]

Despite the medieval conquest of Gujarat by Alauddin Khalji and its annexation to the Delhi
Sultanate in the 13th century, peaceful Islamic settlements appear to have continued under
Hindu rule. Bi-lingual Indian inscriptions from Somnath in Sanskrit and Arabic, make reference
to the Arab and Iranian shipowners who constructed mosques in Gujarat from the grants given
to Muslims by the Vaghela rajput ruler, Arjunadeva. [56] Similar epitaphs mention the arrival of
pious Muslim nakhudas from Hormuz as well as families from Bam residing in Cambay, and
from the discovery of tombstones of personages from Siraf, at the time one of the most
6/18
important ports on the Iranian coast in the Persian Gulf, suggests altogether that the Muslim
community of Junagadh had a strong and established link with Iran through the commercial
sea routes.[57] The 19th century European Gazetteer by George Newenham Wright,
corroborates this cultural exchange through the ages as he points out that the Arab
inhabitants of Mukalla, capital city of the Hadhramaut coastal region in Yemen, were known to
intermarry with the Mohammedans of Kathiawar and those resident from other areas of
Gujarat.[58]

Arabic sources speak of the warm reception of the significant immigration of Hadhrami sāda
(descendants of Muhammed) who settled in Surat during the Gujarat Sultanate. Prominent
and well respected Sāda who claimed noble descent through Abu Bakr al-Aydarus ("Patron
Saint of Aden"),[59] were held in high esteem among the people and became established as
Arab religious leaderships of local Muslims. Intermarriages with Indian Muslim women were
highly sought[60] which led to a creole Hadhrami-Indian community to flourish in Gujarat by the
17th century.[61]

Early 14th-century Maghrebi adventurer, Ibn Batuta, who visited India with his entourage,
recalls in his memoirs about Cambay, one of the great emporia of the Indian Ocean that
indeed:[62]

“ Cambay is one of the most beautiful cities as regards the artistic architecture of its houses and the ”
construction of its mosques. The reason is that the majority of its inhabitants are foreign
merchants, who continually build their beautiful houses and wonderful mosques - an achievement in
which they endeavor to surpass each other.

In the 17th century, the eminent city of Surat, famous for its cargo export of silk and diamonds
had come on a par with contemporary Venice and Beijing which were some of the great
mercantile cities of Europe and Asia,[63] and earned the distinguished title, Bab al-Makkah (Gate
of Mecca)because it is one of the great places of the subcontinent where ancient Hindus
welcomed Islam and it flourished as time went on.[64][65] The Surat port (the only Indian port
facing westwards) then became the principal port of India during Mughal rule to gain
widespread international repute, which encouraged a period of Muslims for Hajj pilgrimage
from countries such as Iran, Turkey, Turkmenistan, China, who assembled in great numbers to
make the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca from the ports of Surat, Veraval and Mandvi[66] with the
royal patronage of the Mughals.

Notable Gujarati Muslims

South African cricketer Hashim Amla, South African Quran - Bible Scholar Ahmed Deedat,
Badruddin Tyabji,[67] a Congress president and Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of
Pakistan.[68] Bollywood is represented by Parveen Babi, who came from an aristocratic
Yusufzai Pathan family, Farooq Shaikh and Sanjeeda Sheikh. Famous Indian film score
composers include Salim-Sulaiman Merchant who are Ismaili Shia and Taher Saifuddin, who

7/18
was the 51st Da'i al-Mutlaq of the Dawoodi Bohras, a sect within Shia Islam. Famous political
activists such as Ahmed Timol,[69] Yusuf Dadoo, and Ahmed Kathrada played a leading role in
the anti-apartheid movement of South Africa. [70]

See also

References
1. ^ "Gujarātī". Onmiglot: online encyclopaedia of writing systems and languages . Retrieved 3
May 2014.
2. ^ Patel, edited by Sujata; Masselos, Jim (2003). Bombay and Mumbai : the city in
transition. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195663179.
3. ^ Laurent Gayer (2014). Karachi : ordered disorder and the struggle for the city . p. 300.
ISBN 978-0-19-935444-3. Retrieved 11 February 2015. "Out of Pakistan's forty-two largest
industrial groups, thirty-six were in the hands of Karachi-based businessmen - generally
members of the Gujarati/Kutchi/Kathiawari trading sects, both Sunni (Memon) and Shia
(Khojas, Bohras, etc.) Whereas they accounted for 0.4 per cent of Pakistan's total
population, Gujarati trading groups (they are considered Muhajir since many of their
members were already settled in Karachi before the independence) controlled 43 per cent
of the country's industrial capital. Halai Memons alone (0.3 per cent of the national
population) owned 27 per cent of these industries. And while he patronised Pashtun
entrepreneurs in Karachi, Ayub Khan also relied upon Gujarati businessmen to finance his
electoral campaign in 1964, while facilitating the entry into politics of some Muhajir
entrepreneurs, such as Sadiq Dawood, a Memon industrialist who became an MNA, and
the Treasurer of Ayub's Convention Muslim League."
4. ^ Peck, Amelia. Interwoven Globe: The Worldwide Textile Trade, 1500-1800 . The
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-58839-496-5. Retrieved 4
February 2015. "Of the Asian trading communities the most successful were the Gujaratis,
as witnessed not only by Pires and Barbosa but by a variety of other sources. All confirm
that merchants from the Gujarati community routinely held the most senior post open to
an expatriate trader, that of shah-bandar (controller of maritime trade)."
5. ^ "Where on earth do they speak Gujarati?" . Retrieved 29 January 2014.
6. ^ ed. by Robert Bickers (2000). New frontiers : imperialism's new communities in East
Asia, 1842-1953 (1. publ. ed.). Manchester [u.a.]: Manchester Univ. Press. p. 67. ISBN 0-
7190-5604-7. "The 1889 Hong Kong Directory and Hong List for the Far East lists three
Sindhi firms in Hong Kong among a total of thirty-one firms, of which the majority were
Parsi and Gujarati Muslim."
7. ^ Nandita Dutta. "An Indian Reunion". littleindia.com. Retrieved 9 February 2015. "Raziah
Locate is a manager in a hospitality school. Her grandfather Omarjee Ismael embarked on
a voyage with his wife in 1870 from Kathor, near Surat, in Gujarat. He came to Reunion
Island to seek better opportunities to further his trade in clothing. Her grandfather was one
of the 40,000 merchants, traders and artisans from Gujarat who are said to have voluntary
migrated to Reunion Island starting in the 1850s. Her grandfather was one of the pioneers
8/18
 who paved the way for other Gujarati Muslims to settle in Reunion, who have built a
mosque and a madrasa on the island."
8. ^ Hugh Eakin (August 14, 2014). "In the Heart of Mysterious Oman" . The New York Review
of Books. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
9. ^ Nafeesa Syeed. "Learning Gujarati in Yemen". indiarealtime.com. Retrieved 9 February
2015. "Mr. Haji, clad in the gold-trimmed, white cap that is standard for Bohra men, was in
a flurry on a recent Friday, as he catered to streams of constituents and answered phone
calls. He slid effortlessly between Arabic, Urdu, English and Dawat ni zabaan—a strain of
Gujarati particular to Bohras that is peppered with Arabic and Persian. He explained that
they have other shrines in Yemen, but this is one of the most important. Some 10,000
Bohras, mostly from India but also from their populations in Pakistan, East Africa, the
United States, Europe and the Middle East, travel here each year."
10. ^ Nazar Abbas. "Pakistanis who have never seen Pakistan". The Friday Times. Retrieved 9
February 2015. "After ties broke down between India and Portugal, Gujarati Muslims
stranded in Mozambique were given Pakistani citizenship...Merchants from Diu had
settled on the island of Mozambique in the early 1800s. Hindus from Diu, Sunni Muslims
from Daman, and others from Goa migrated to Mozambique as small traders, construction
workers and petty employees. Many Gujaratis moved from South Africa to Mozambique in
the latter half of the 19th century."
11. ^ Ababu Minda Yimene (2004). An African Indian Community in Hyderabad: Siddi Identity,
Its Maintenance and Change. pp. 66, 67. ISBN 3-86537-206-6. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
"Some centuries later, the Gujarati merchants established permanent trading posts in
Zanzibar, consolidating their influence in the Indian Ocean... Gujarati Muslims, and their
Omani partners, engaged in a network of mercantile activities among Oman, Zanzibar and
Bombay. Thanks to those mercantile Gujarati, India remained by far the principal trading
partner of Zanzibar."
12. ^ Dr Asghar Ali Engineer. "Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and recent riots - an Aman
Report". Centre for study of society and secularism . Archived from the original on February
9, 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2015. "Lot of Muslims had gone from Surat and still there is
a beautiful Surti mosque. Muslims in Myanmar are highly diverse. There are very few
ethnic Burmese Muslims, most of them are migrants from different parts of India when
Burma was a part of India. There are large number of Tamil, Gujarati and Bengali and
Bohra Muslims and very few Urdu speaking Muslims since Urdu speaking are not in
business."
13. ^ Pedro Machado. Ocean of Trade. Cambridge University Press. p. 232. ISBN 978-1-107-
07026-4. "Gujarati merchants may also have financed slave voyages to Madagascar in the
nineteenth century. They sailed to its west coast from the mid 1810s to the mid 1820s but
do not appear to have become extensively involved in this trafficking, either as shippers or
as financiers. This is likely explained by the increasing presence in coastal Madagascar of
Khoja and Bohra Shi'ia merchants from Kutch who, together with the Bhatiya merchants,
established a significant presence there as financiers of the slave trade from the second
decade of the nineteenth century."
14. ^ Rai, edited by Rajesh; Reeves, Peter (2009). The South Asian diaspora transnational
9/18
 networks and changing identities. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-203-89235-6. "Gujarat has
maintained commercial contacts with the outside world since ancient times. The tradition
of sea-faring and overseas contacts goes back many centuries and the Gujarati diaspora
was a logical outcome of such a tradition. The Gujarati merchant diaspora can still be
found in the littoral cities of West Asia and Africa on the one hand, and in Southeast Asia
on the other."
15. ^ Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, Gujarat Population: Musalmans and Parsis,
Volume IX pages 13 to 14 Government Central Press, Bombay
16. ^ "Parzor | The UNESCO Parsi Zoroastrian Project" . Unescoparzor.com. Retrieved 2015-12-
24.
17. ^ People of India Gujarat Volume XXII Part One Editors R. B Lal, P.B.S.V Padmanabham,
G Krishnan and M Azeez Mohideen pages 74 to 77
18. ^ name="Indian Census 2001 - Religion" Indian Census 2001 - Religion Archived 2007-03-
12 at the Wayback Machine.
19. ^ Prabhune, Tushar (December 27, 2011). "Gujarat helped establish Islam in SE Asia" .
Ahmedabad: The Times of India.
20. ^ Gokhale. Surat In The Seventeenth Century . Popular Prakashan. p. 28. Retrieved 23
February 2015. "Islam was introduced into Gujarat in the 7th century C.E. The first Arab
raid came in 635 when the Governor of Bahrain sent an expedition against Broach. Then
through the centuries colonies of Arab and Persian merchants began sprouting in the port
cities of Gujarat, such as Cambay, Broach and Surat."
21. ^ Mallison, edited by Tazim R. Kassam, Françoise (2010). Gināns : texts and contexts :
essays on Ismaili hymns from South Asia in honour of Zawahir Moir (Rev. ed.). Delhi:
Primus Books. p. 150. ISBN 8190891871. Retrieved 28 April 2015. "In the early period, it
appears that the Ismailis in western India, consisted of ethnic Arab or Persian merchant
settlers, as well as local converts from pastoralist, cultivating or merchant groups. They
may have included militarised peasants and pastoralists from north-west India, some of
whom went on to become part of the emerging Rajput status hierarchy... After the fall of
Alamut to the Mongols in 1256, more Nizari missionaries came to Sind and Gujarat, Ucch
in particular becoming an important centre."
22. ^ Berkeley, Ira M. Lapidus, University of California, (2014). A history of Islamic societies
(Third ed.). p. 399. ISBN 0521514304. "The Mahdawi movement was important in Gujarat
in the sixteenth century and was widely accepted during the reign of Sultan Akbar by the
administrative, military, landowning, and merchant elites."
23. ^ Berkeley, Ira M. Lapidus, University of California, (2014). A history of Islamic societies
(Third ed.). p. 399. ISBN 0521514304. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
24. ^ Muslim Peoples: A World Ethnographic Survey editor Richard V Weekes pages 294 to
297
25. ^ "Gujarati showed Vasco 'da' way" . The Times of India. Oct 3, 2010 . Retrieved 1 October
2013. "Historians have differed over the identity of the sailor, calling him a Christian, a
Muslim and a Gujarati. According to another account, he was the famous Arab navigator
Ibn Majid. Some historians suggest Majid could not have been near the vicinity at the time.
German author Justus says it was Malam who accompanied Vasco...Italian researcher
10/18
 Sinthia Salvadori too has concluded that it was Malam who showed Gama the way to
India. Salvadori has made this observation in her 'We Came In Dhows', an account written
after interacting with people in Gujarat."
26. ^ N. Subrahmanian, Tamil̲an̲pan̲, S. Jeyapragasam (1976).Homage to a Historian: A
Festschrift. Dr. N. Subrahmanian 60th Birthday Celebration Committee. p. 62 . Retrieved 1
October 2013.
27. ^ Darwis Khudori (2007). Rethinking solidarity in global society : the challenge of
globalisation for social and solidarity movements : 50 years after Bandung Asian-African
Conference 1955. Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia: Strategic Information and Research
Development Centre. p. 35. ISBN 9789833782130. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
28. ^ Aritonang, edited by Jan Sihar; Steenbrink, Karel (2008). A history of Christianity in
Indonesia. Leiden: Brill. p. 11. ISBN 978-90-04-17026-1. Retrieved 11 February 2015. "The
predominant Muslim position in the international trade was also represented by Muslim
outposts along the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. They included Randir, Surat
and Cambay (in Gujarat). In fact, they had been supposed to have not only played a
significant role in international Muslim trade, but also in the spread of Islam, in supposedly
in the Malay-Indonesian archipelago."
29. ^ Achyut Yagnik, Suchitra Sheth (2005). The shaping of modern Gujarat : plurality,
Hindutva, and beyond. New Delhi: Penguin Books. p. 25. ISBN 0-14400-038-5. Retrieved 11
February 2015. "After the opening up of East Africa in the nineteenth century, they became
pioneers of trading activity there, dominating not only the financial world but also the
political affairs of the region. Interestingly, it was these Gujarati Muslim traders along with
Kutchi Bhatias who provided equipment, rations and financial services to European
explorers such as, Stanley, Livingstone, Burton and Cameron, and thus facilitated the
'discovery of Africa'"
30. ^ Hall, Kenneth R. (2010). A History of Early Southeast Asia Maritime Trade and Societal
Development, 100-1500. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Pub. Group. p. 309.
ISBN 0742567621. Retrieved 28 April 2015. "All the Gujarati merchants were Muslims, and
the elite among them were termed adhiraja, a Malay title of nobility, seemingly as an
acknowledgment that there was a local mix of the resident Gujarati merchant elite and the
Malay political aristocracy."
31. ^ N. Hanif (2000). Biographical Encyclopaedia of Sufis: South Asia . Sarup & Sons.
ISBN 9788176250870.
32. ^ Dukhira, Chit. "The genuis: Amode Ibrahim Atchia, (1868-1947)" . lexpess.mu.online.
33. ^ Atchia, Dr. Michael. "Major Atchia, a model of enterprise". lexpress.mu.online.
34. ^ "Muslim communities of Gujarat". TwoCircles.net. Retrieved 9 February 2015. "Muslims
of Gujarat are probably the most diverse of Muslim population of any other Indian state.
Some of them came from different parts of the Islamic world over a period of thousand
years to seek security, employment, trade, and to spread Islam; bringing with them their
culture, knowledge, and their own versions of Islam. Though there has been much
interaction with different Muslim groups, the differences have survived to make Gujarati
Muslims a very diverse ummah...First came the Arabs; within the first 100 years of
revelation of Quran, there were a number of Muslim towns along the coast of Gujarat.
11/18
 They were followed by Iranians, Africans, and Central Asians. Earlier Muslims came as
traders; some came with the invading armies and settled down. Many others came
seeking better employment opportunities, while some like Bohras came here fleeing
persecution."
35. ^ Gujarati Muslim Marriage, a dedicated service to assist Gujarati Muslims to marry
within the community.
36. ^ People of India Gujarat Volume XXI Part Two edited by R.B Lal, P.B.S.V Padmanabham,
G Krishnan & M Azeez Mohideen pages 487-491
37. ^ "Baloch of India Khadiya Estate : A Seven Salute State"

. balochhistory11.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2015. "It was the stage in the

regime of K.S Moh. Fahte Khanji - II, Independence of Indian nation was declared and all
the royal authorities were forced to surrender the throne where the Nawab of Junagadh
has left his throne and left for Pakistan but the Late K.S Moh. Fahte Khanji - II did not left
Junagadh because of the faithfulness towards the soil of Junagadh and the country he
stayed back and died within few years after independence. Today at present the sons of
Late Khan Shree Moh. Fahte Khanji - II, Late Khan Shree Mohammad Iqbal Khanji Baluch
and Khan Shree Mohammad Khanji Baluch who is Member of Legislative Assembly
government of gujarat from Veraval are governing their estate."
38. ^ "Baloch of India"

. History of Baloch and Balochistan. Retrieved 12 February 2015. "In the 18th century, the
Gohil Rajput rulers of Bhavnagar invited a number of Baloch to serve as their bodyguards.
They were granted the jagir in Sehor."
39. ^ "Qadir Bukhsh Rind Baloch alias Kadu Makrani"

. History of Baloch and Balochistan. Retrieved 12 February 2015. "When life became hard
for the working classes in Makran, Balochistan due to British colonists, Kadu Makrani, with
his tribe, migrated to Kathiawar, Gujarat in mid of the 19th century. Due to their courage
and bravery, Nawabs of Kathiawar acquired their services to eliminate dacoits of
Kathiawar. Kadu Makrani and people of his tribe earned territories and properties as
rewards of their services. The rise of Kadu Makrani was disturbing to British imperialists.
They were looking for an excuse to disarm Kadu Makrani and his tribe to break their
power."
40. ^ Vijay Prashad (2002), Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the
Myth of Cultural Purity, Beacon Press, ISBN 0-8070-5011-3, "... since the captains of the
African and Arab vessels bore the title Sidi (from Sayyid, or the lineage of Muhammad), the
African settlers on the Indian mainland came to be called Siddis ..."
41. ^ Shanti Sadiq Ali (1996), The African dispersal in the Deccan , Orient Blackswan, ISBN 81-
250-0485-8, "... Among the Siddi families in Karnataka there are Catholics, Hindus and
Muslims ... It was a normal procedure for the Portuguese to baptise African slaves ... After
living for generations among Hindus they considered themselves to be Hindus ... The Siddi
Hindus owe allegiance to Saudmath ..."
42. ^ Wink, André (1990). Al-Hind, the making of the Indo-Islamic world (2. ed., amended. ed.).

12/18
 Leiden: E.J. Brill. p. 68. ISBN 9004092498. Retrieved 29 January 2014. "Up to about the
tenth century the largest settlement of Arabs and Persian Muslim traders are not found in
Malabar however but rather more to the north in coastal towns of the Konkan and Gujarat,
where in pre-Islamic times the Persians dominated the trade with the west. Here the main
impetus to Muslim settlement came from the merchants of the Persian Gulf and Oman,
with a minority from Hadramaut."
43. ^ Schimmel, Annemarie (1980). Handbuch der Orientalistik. Leiden: Brill. p. 65.
ISBN 9004061177. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
44. ^ Dunn, Ross E. (2005). The adventures of Ibn Battuta, a Muslim traveler of the fourteenth
century (Rev. ed. with a new pref. ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-
520-24385-4. Retrieved 9 February 2015. "Many of these "foreign merchants" were
transient visitors, men of South Arabian and Persian Gulf ports, who migrated in and out of
Cambay with the rhythm of the monsoons. But others were men with Persian and fewer
Arab patronyms whose families had settled in the town generations, even centuries earlier,
intermarrying with Konkani ethnic origins within Gujarats women, and assimilating
everyday customs of the Hindu hinterland"
45. ^ Boyajian, James C. (2008). Portuguese trade in Asia under the Habsburgs, 1580-1640
(Pbk. ed.). Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-8018-8754-
3. Retrieved 20 February 2015. "The history of Indian Ocean trade is a succession of alien
merchant diasporas establishing themselves and eventually dominating the region.
Gujarat's Muslim community, for example, had originated from traders their mosques, and
later the very small settlements of merchants from Turkey, Egypt, Persia and Arabia."
46. ^ Rai, edited by Rajesh; Reeves, Peter (2009). The South Asian diaspora transnational
networks and changing identities. London: Routledge. p. 33. ISBN 0-203-89235-6.
Retrieved 20 February 2015. "The social world of the Muslim merchants was complex. The
heterogeneity of the Muslim merchant community was made up by the trade but much
smaller number of settlers originating from various countries, as well as by those who
were peripatetic traders, coming from places like Persia, Egypt and few from
Afghanistan."
47. ^ Ashish Vashi & Harit Mehta. "Gujarat built mosques to draw Arab ships". Times of India.
Retrieved 14 February 2015. "The accounts of Arab travellers like Masudi, Istakhari, Ibn
Hauqal and others, who visited Gujarat between the 9th and 12th centuries, amply testify
to the settlements of Muslims in Cambay and other cities of Gujarat."
48. ^ Acyuta Yājñika, Suchitra Sheth (2005). The shaping of modern Gujarat : plurality,
Hindutva, and beyond. New Delhi: Penguin Books. p. 42. ISBN 0-14400-038-5. Retrieved 14
February 2015.
49. ^ Ipgrave, Michael; editors, David Marshall, (2010). Humanity : texts and contexts :
Christian and Muslim perspectives : a record of the sixth Building Bridges seminar
convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury, National University of Singapore, December
2007. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. p. 40. ISBN 978-1-58901-716-0.
Retrieved 22 February 2015. "Memorials can be found in Gujarat honoring Arab Muslims
who martyred themselves fighting against Muslim Turks on behalf of Hindu kingdoms.
These same kingdoms endowed mosques on behalf of Arab traders."
13/18
50. ^ Parsis in India and the Diaspora . Routledge. 2007. pp. 51, 52. ISBN 9781134067527.
Retrieved 29 March 2015. "The Chinchani copper plates, datable to the early 10th century,
mention the appointment of Muhammed Sugapita (Sanskrit - 'Madhumati'), a Tajik, as
governor of 'Sanyanapattana' (Sanjan port) by the Rashtrakuta king from 878 to 915 AC
(Sircar 1962)... This fact is relevant in that it mentions a Muslim administrator controlling
the region during the late 9th, and early 10th century... That Sanjan had a large and
cosmopolitan population is mentioned in the accounts of travelers as well as the Indian
inscriptions and grants mentioned above. While the local tribal populations consisted
largely of Kolis and Mahars, the inscriptions list Muslims and Arabs, Panchagaudiya
Brahmins, Modha Baniyas and Zoroastrians (Sankalia 1983: 210)"
51. ^ Wink, André (1990). Al-Hind, the making of the Indo-Islamic world (2. ed., amended. ed.).
Leiden: E.J. Brill. p. 178. ISBN 90-04-09249-8. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
52. ^ Pearson, M. N. (1976). Merchants and rulers in Gujarat : the response to the Portuguese
in the sixteenth century. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 25. ISBN 0-520-02809-
0. Retrieved 14 February 2015. "Most of these "foreign" Muslims were resident in Gujarat,
with their own houses there, and so were in fact subjects of Gujarat, whatever their country
of birth, which could be Turkey, Egypt, Arabia or Persia. The heterogeneity of the Muslim
population was not confined to merchants, for the sultans made a practice of tempting
capable foreigners to Gujarat with handsome salaries, to serve in their armies."
53. ^ Satish Chandra Misra (1964). Muslim Communities in Gujarat: Preliminary Studies in
Their History and Social Organization. Asia Publishing House,. p. 5. Retrieved 21 February
2015.
54. ^ Shaykh Gibril Fouad Haddad. "Abul Hasan Ali Al-Masudi". As-Sunnah Foundation of
America. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
55. ^ Cunha, J. Gerson Da (1993). Notes on the history and antiquities of Chaul and Bassein.
New Delhi: Asian Educational Services. p. 8. ISBN 8120608453. Retrieved 23 February
2015. "The Lar, also called Lardesa, mentioned by Masudi, is evidently the territory of
Gujarat and the Northern Konkan, embracing Broach, Thana, and Chaul, and which name is
given by Ptolemy as Larike...As regards Balhara, whom Masudi mentions as the reigning
prince to whom Saimur was tributary, it has long been identified as the name of the
dynasty which reigned at Valabhi (Valabhipura) in Gujarat, and according to Soliman, a
merchant and one of the greatest travellers of his age, was in his time the chief of all the
greatest princes in India, the latter acknowledging his preeminence; while the Arabs
themselves were shown great favours and enjoyed great privileges in his dominions."
56. ^ Ray, edited by Bharati (2009). Different types of history (1. impr. ed.). Delhi: Pearson
Longman. p. 43. ISBN 8131718182. "The person responsible for the construction of the
mosque was a sailor and shipowner known as Firuz b. Abu Ibrahim from the state of
Hormuz, and in the Arabic version the Muslim ruler to whom these sailors gave their
allegiance is recorded as Abu Nusrat Mamud b. Ahmad.... Firuz the shipwner is not the
only Persian who appears to have been a person of some standing among the Muslim
communities of Gujarat. In Bhadresvar one of the tombstones belongs to one Abu'l-faraj
b. Ali, from Siraf, at that time one of the most important ports on the Iranian coast of the
Persian Gulf. Another inscription found in Cambay, records the construction of a mosque
14/18
 by Ali b. Shapur in 615/1218-19. The name Shapur shows the Iranian origin of this
personage. Other epitaphs are to be found in Cambay belonging to Abi'l-mahasin b.
Ardeshir al-Ahwi (d.630/1232-3), Sharaf al-din Murtida b. Mohammad al-Istarabadi, and Ali
b Salar b. Ali Yazdi... In the inscription of the mosque at Junagadh, Iraj, the name of a
southern Iranian city, near Ramhurmuz, or of the ancestor of Abulqasim b. Ali is also an
indication of the Iranian origin of our "chief of the marchants and shipmasters of the
town"."
57. ^ Bayani-Wolpert, Mehrdad Shokoohy with contributions by Manijeh; Shokoohy, Natalie H.
(1988). Bhadreśvar ; the oldest Islamic monuments in India . Leiden: E.J. Brill. p. 43.
ISBN 9004083413. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
58. ^ George Newenham Wright. A New and Comprehensive Gazetteer, Volume 5 . p. 41.
Retrieved 11 February 2015. "The coast of Southern Arabia, was explored in 1833, by Mr.
Bird. The people at Mukallah intermarry with the Mohammedans of Katehwar and Gujarat.
The sheikh's youngest wife is the daughter of a petty chief in that quarter. The town has
rather an imposing appearance as approaching it from the sea."
59. ^ José-Marie Bel, Théodore Monod, Aden: Port mythique du Yémen, pg 99
60. ^ Ulrike Freitag, William G. Clarence-Smith, ed. by Ulrike Freitag (1997). Hadhrami traders,
scholars and statesmen in the Indian Ocean : 1750s - 1960s (illustrated ed.). Leiden [u.a.]:
Brill. p. 67. ISBN 9789004107717. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
61. ^ Ho, Engseng (2006). The graves of Tarim genealogy and mobility across the Indian
Ocean. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 167. ISBN 9780520938694. Retrieved
24 February 2015.
62. ^ Dunn, Ross E. (1986). The adventures of Ibn Battuta, a Muslim traveler of the fourteenth
century. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 218. ISBN 9780520057715. Retrieved
30 September 2013.
63. ^ Poros, Maritsa V. (2011). Modern migrations : Gujarati Indian networks in New York and
London. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-7222-8. Retrieved 16
February 2015. "Indeed, Fernand Braudel likened Surat to some of the great mercantile
cities of Europe and Asia, such as Venice and Beijing.... Godinho estimated that Surat's
population was more than 100,000, but less with some settlements of people from other
cities all over from India residing in the city as well as some foreigners frequenting it for
business. He even claimed that it surpasses our "Evora in grandeur""
64. ^ David Smith (2003). Hinduism and modernity. Oxford: Blackwell. p. 62. ISBN 0-631-
20862-3. Retrieved 11 February 2015. "Surat was then the place of embarkation of
pilgrims to Mecca; known as Bab al-Makkah or the Gate of Mecca, it was almost a sacred
place for the Muslims of India. More to the point it was the main city for foreign imports,
where many merchants had their bases, and all the European trading companies were
established. Its population was more than 100, 000."
65. ^ The journal of Asian studies, Volume 35, Issues 1-2 . Retrieved 11 February 2015. "For a
pious emperor, Surat had more than economic and political importance; it was the port
from which the hajj (pilgrimage) ships left Mughal India for the Red Sea. The port was
variously known as Bab-al-Makkah, the Bab-ul-Hajj, the Dar-al-Hajj, and the Bandar-i-
Mubarak."
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66. ^ Simpson, Edward (11 January 2007). Muslim Society and the Western Indian Ocean: The
Seafarers of Kachchh. Routledge. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-203-09951-3. Retrieved 26 February
2013.
67. ^ "Making Britain: Discover how South Asians shaped the nation, 1870-1950" . The Open
University. Retrieved 9 February 2015. "Badruddin Tyabji was the son of Cambay
merchant, Tyab Ali, and his wife, Ameena, the daughter of a rich mullah, Meher Ali."
68. ^ "Jinnah didn't know Urdu, was fluent in Gujarati" . Times of India. Retrieved 9 February
2015. "But Jinnah was fluent in Gujarati. He could read as well as write Gujarati, his
mother tongue. Jinnah was a native of Paneli — not far from Gandhiji's birthplace
Porbandar. It is often said the issue of Partition boiled down to these two Kathiawadis."
69. ^ "Ahmed Timol | South African History Online" . Sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 28 August
2013.
70. ^ Burton, Antoinette (1 May 2012). "Review of Kathrada, A. M., No Bread for Mandela:
Memoirs of Ahmed Kathrada, Prisoner No. 468/64". www.h-net.org.

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Sunni Muslim Vohra Patel of Bhruch
bharuchinfo.blogspot.com/2008/04/sunni-muslim-vohra-patel.html

Sunni Muslim Vohra Patel of Bharuch

Vora Patel or Vohra Patel (vohras) is a Sunni Muslim Patel community located in Gujarat,
India, primarily in the Bharuch District.
The villages and main town in Bharuch where Vohras reside are not as heavily populated as
they once were, as many have been seeking greener pastures and can be found all over the
world, from the Middle East to Europe to Australia and America.

The UK is home to the largest population of Vohras outside of Bharuch. Vohras also known as
Bharuchies initially settled in the mill towns of Lancashire where many still reside in large
numbers. Although primarily situated in the mill towns of Blackburn, Bolton and Preston, there
are also large communities in Dewsbury,Leicester and parts of East London. Many Vohras
moved to East London during the early eighties as mills began to shut down during the
Thatcherite period. These communities are now well-established although the communities in
Lancashire have the higher profile in England.

Vohras also begun to migrate to North America in early eighties and large communities are
now found in Chicago in the USA and Toronto in Canada.

Common dishes of Vohras include kitchry kury and daar-gosht and chawal, which is lentils,
meat and boiled rice. Though the first and second generation in England are beginning to
acquire taste for continental cuisine.

The expatriate community in England is coming under scrutiny as they, like many new arrivals
in England appear not have integrated with the indigenous community or with the other
Muslim communities. They are known to marry only with in their community, have their own
cemeteries, community centres and masjids. However this too is changing as many of the
initial settlers are returning to Bharuch on retirement or have died, leaving second and third
generations who are more religious,but inward looking.

There are many positive contributions made by the vohras in England and back home.Vohras
have set up their own associations in their host countries which continue to fund physical and
mental well being of those that they had left behind.In particular the villages and towns of
Bharuch have been transformed by the money sent back. However, they are also criticised as
they have not used their new-found wealth to set up businesses, factories or educational
institutions in Gujarat.These would have benefited the Vohras, Muslim and wider Gujarati
communities by providing long term, self-sustaining employment and advancement
opportunities.

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 It is widely thought that neglecting business and educational needs has led to a dependency
culture and over dependence on going abroad. The able and enterprising do not stay but move
abroad as soon as they can. Vohras have become exporters of people from Bharuch.
Useful Links:

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Organisations
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Muslim News
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18/18
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New spinal surgery has patients walking within a day Page 1 of 3

New spinal surgery has patients walking within a day

BY AMY O'BRIAN, FOR CANWEST NEWS SERVICE

18-year-old Carmen Stolk was the first person in Canada to receive a new surgery for scoliosis. Her mom Donna had surgery for
the same scoliosis 33 years ago. Dr. Firoz Miyanji is also pictured.
Photograph by: Bill Keay, For Canwest News Service

VANCOUVER — To watch her walk into a room, you would never guess that Carmen Stolk had major
surgery six weeks ago to correct a curve in her spine.

The 18-year-old stood straight and confident Thursday morning at BC Children's Hospital, looking
happy to be back in the building where history was made in August when surgeons performed a new,
less invasive type of surgery to correct her scoliosis.

Stolk was the first person in Canada to receive the surgery, which reduces the amount of trauma done
to patients' backs, allowing them to get up and walk the next day.

Stolk spent four days in hospital before she was sent home to Prince George, B.C. Since then, she's
been going for long walks and is eagerly awaiting her doctor's go-ahead to get back to swimming and
running.

In contrast, her mother, who had surgery 30 years ago to correct her scoliosis, spent three days in the
intensive care unit, had several blood transfusions and had to wear a body cast for six months.

"I am just very grateful," Stolk said while sitting next to her mother at BC Children's Hospital.

Rather than making one long, deep incision along Carmen's spine — and having to strip muscle away
New spinal surgery has patients walking within a day Page 2 of 3

from bone to insert a corrective rod — her surgeons made three smaller incisions through which they
fed the rod. They then used screws to align and tighten the rod, immediately correcting the curve in
Carmen's spine.

Dr. Firoz Miyanji is the pediatric surgeon who performed the procedure. Since fixing Carmen's back, he
has performed the surgery three more times and said the improvements in blood loss and recovery
time are remarkable.

"The reason this is a breakthrough . . . is the blood loss is a lot less, the pain the patient feels after the
procedure is a lot less, the requirement for pain medication is a lot less and what we're trying to do is
get them immediately mobilized, so they stand and walk the next day," Miyanji said Thursday.

Patients undergoing other types of scoliosis-correcting surgeries normally require at least one night in
the intensive care unit and can only sit up in the days following with the help of a physiotherapist,
Miyanji said.

When Stolk's mother, Donna Stolk, underwent surgery at BC Children's Hospital in 1978 to correct her
scoliosis, her experience was drastically different. She doesn't remember anything from her three days
in the ICU, but recalls the three weeks she spent strapped to a Stryker frame, being turned every four
hours to alternately face the floor, and then the ceiling.

Her trip home to the B.C. Interior community of Bridge Lake involved lying on the floor of a float plane
for two hours, and then lying in the box of a pickup truck to be driven to her home. She was in a full
plaster body cast, on her back, for two months, and a walking body cast for four months.

On Thursday, the mother and daughter lifted the backs of their shirts to illustrate the drastic difference
in their scars. Donna's scar reaches from the base of her neck all the way down her spine. Her
daughter has three two-inch scars.

Scoliosis, which is a curvature of the spine, occurs in up to three per cent of the population.

Many people live with a slight curve in their spine for their entire lives without any significant problems.
But when the curve is greater than 50 degrees, doctors often recommend surgery.

In Stolk's case, her curve was between 40 and 50 degrees when it started to cause her pain and
discomfort. She had pinched nerves, cramping, her right shoulder was significantly higher than her left,
she had a bump in her back, and her ribs jutted out to one side.

"Cosmetically, I really didn't like it," she said.

But within hours after surgery, she looked in the mirror and was delighted to see that her ribs were
back in place and her shoulders were level with one another.

"It's amazing," she said.

© Copyright (c) Postmedia News

Previous Next
New spinal surgery has patients walking within a day Page 3 of 3

Before and after X-rays of 18-year-old Carmen Stolk's back.

Photograph by: Bill Keay, For Canwest News Service
 MUSTAFABAD TANKARIA- HISTORY BOOK

Second Edition: 2014

(First Edition published in 2007, on www.tankaria.wetpaint.com)

Tankaria is the biggest village in the Bharuch Taluka and second biggest village in the
Bharuch District of Gujarat State, India. The village has the highest rate of literacy in
Bharuch District. Nearly to the mid of the twentieth century, the village was famous for
its cotton growing farmers and its businesspeople. Many Tankarvis took an active part
in the freedom movement of India.

Tankaria has produced many Primary and High School Teachers, Doctors, Engineers,
Pharmacists, Building Contractors, Skilled Technicians, Businessmen, Government
Officials, Writers, Poets, Politicians and, Social Workers. Tankaria has also produced a
remarkable numbers of Islamic Scholars. Tankaria has produced few University
Professors, College Lecturers, Lawyers, Land Surveyors and Chartered Accountants.
Tankarvis working as primary school teachers can find everywhere in cities and villages
in Bharuch and its neighboring districts. Tankaria is widely known for its Primary
School Teachers, Businessmen and, Poets. Among Bharuchi Vahora Patel Community,
Tankarvis are famous for their best hospitality and friendly nature.

Many Tankarvis settled in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, and Mumbai. Few Tankarvis
also settled elsewhere in Gujarat. Outside India Tankarvis mainly settled in the UK,
USA, Canada, South Africa, Zambia and other African countries. Some Tankarvis also
settled for employment or business in countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Kuwait,
Oman, Mauritius, Reunion Island, and New Zealand.

The name of the village was Mustafabad, later on it was renamed as Tankaria. (After
1453 CE & Before 1583 CE. Please refer Page 05 for more details). Currently,
Mustafabad Tankaria History Book is divided into 04 Parts. More parts and chapters will
be added in the future editions with contributor’s name.

Part 01. Recorded History: Edited By: Nasirhusen Ahmed Lotiya

Part 02. Oral History (Oral Tradition): Edited By: Nasirhusen Ahmed Lotiya & Mustak
Suleman Daula

Part 03. Tankaria and Tankarvis: Edited By: Nasirhusen Ahmed Lotiya

Part 04. Tankaria History (Another Perspective): Edited By: Shakil Abdullah Bha

1
(Notes from editors: Our pure intention of publishing Mustafabad Tankaria-History
Book is to prevent our village history being destroyed physically and morally and lost
forever. We have forgotten how to tell a story to our kids so there is a reason to afraid
our village history will be forgotten forever. If you think our History will help somehow
to our coming generations, please download, save and share the History of our beloved
village with all our Mustafabadi-Tankarvis living all around the world. Tankarvis are
invited to contribute and share their knowledge related to our History. All contributions
will be published with contributor’s name).

Part 01 : Recorded History

Edited By: Nasirusen Ahmed Lotiya

History of Mustafabad Jam-e-Masjid later known as Jam-e-Masjid Tankaria

This masjid is in the centre of the village near the main marketplace (Bazaar).

2
There is an Epigraph/ Inscription affixed to the wall of the historical Jam-e-Masjid. The
inscription is in the Arabic language. Inscription of Jam-e-Masjid happens to be the
earliest record that has come so far to our notice related to our village history. This
inscription translated in the Urdu language in October 1964. Translation wrote in
Gujarati script on a piece of marble that also affixed to the wall of Jam-e-Masjid.

Translation in English is as below.

“Masjid is for the prayer to Allah so do not worship any other than Allah. The Prophet
said, “Whoever builds a Masjid of Allah, Allah builds for him a house in paradise."
Mustafabad Jam-e-Masjid built during the ruling period of the Emperor Qutub Abu’l
Muzaffar Ahmed Shah, by the grace of Allah. Masjid built following the request of the
leader of young Saiyyad Atau’llah Raja honoured with title Sharafu’l- Mulk and the
efforts of Qaziyul- Mashaikh. Masjid was ready for the use on 09 Rabi- Al- Awwal, 857
Hijri.”

Facts:

(1) Construction of Jam-e-Masjid completed on Monday, 19 March 1453 CE

corresponds to 9 Rabi-Al- Awwal, Hijri 857. Conversion of Hijri date to Gregorian date
also verified with Islamic websites. There is a possibility of maximum 01 or 02 days
difference.

(2) Mustafabad Jam-e-Masjid built during the ruling period of Ahmed Shah-II. His
personal name was Jalal Khan. He was the eldest son of Muizz-ud-Din (Karim Khan
also Known as Muhammad Shah-II. Ruled from 1443 CE to 1451 CE) and grandson of
Sultan Ahmed Shah-I (Ahmed Shah Badshah- Founder of Ahmedabad city as Capital.
Ruled from 1411 CE-1442 CE). Qutb-ud-Din Ahmed Shah II was ruling Sultan (King)
from 1451 CE until his death on 25th May 1458 CE (Rajab 12, 862 Hijri) of Muzaffarid
dynasty. Jalal Khan Qutb-ud-din Ahmed Shah II, the eldest son of Muhammad Shah II,
sit on the throne as a youth ruler only at the age of twenty in 1451 CE, and ruled up to
his death on 25th May 1458 CE. He was honoured with titles of Qutb-ud-Din and Qutub
Abu’l Muzaffar- Father of victories. He married to the daughter of Shams Khan from
Nagor. Qutb-ud-Din Ahmed Shah II died on 25th May 1458 CE and buried in the royal
mausoleum in the Manek Chok at Ahmadabad, by the side of his father and his
Grandfather Ahmed Shah I. He was succeeded by popularly known Mahmud Begada
within one month after his death. Mustafabad was under Muzaffarid dynasty.
Muzaffarid dynasty was sultans of Gujarat, in western India from 1391 CE to 1583 CE,
until the conquest of Gujarat by the Mughal Empire. The founder of the Muzaffarid
dynasty was Zafar Khan Muzaffar also known as Muzaffar Shah-I.
3
(3) In the original epigraph/ inscription affixed to the wall of Jam-e-Masjid the name of
the village is mentioned as Mustafabad only; Tankaria did not mention anywhere. It
proves that name of the village was Mustafabad till 1453 CE. This Arabic epigraph/
inscription does not only provide the construction history of Jam-e-Masjid, but it also
provides us the proof that the name of the village in 1453 CE was Mustafabad. This
fact also recorded in the records of Archaeological Survey of India, Government of
India. Dr Z.A. Desai, Director of Epigraphy, stated the facts related to a new naming of
places. As mentioned, he found at least 05 places that are known through epigraphs to
have received new names during the pre- Mughal period. These are (1) Tankaria alias
(alias - Named at another time) Mustafabad in Broach (Bharuch) district of Gujarat. (2)
Diyadar alias Mahmudabad in Sabar Kantha District of Gujarat. (3) Sanchor alias
Muhammadabad in Jalor district of Rajasthan. (4) Malia alias Rasulabad in Rajkot
district of Gujarat and (5) Khakharechi alias Ambiyabad in Rajkot district of Gujarat.

Reference: Archaeological Survey of India, Government of India, EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

– ARABIC AND PERSIAN SUPPLEMENT- 1975, page 30.

History of Mustafabad Jam-e-Masjid also recorded in the below mentioned Government

records.

(1) Indian Archaeology 1972-73, Page 48.

(2) Archaeological Survey of India, Government of India. Edition-1978, Page 48.

(3) Epigraphic Resources in Gujarat- Page 19.

It is recorded in the Archaeological Survey of India on page 48 of Edition- 1978 as

below.

“GUJARAT”

“As Inscription of the Sultans of Gujarat, District Broach, a slightly damaged record
from Tankaria, District Broach, records the construction of the Jami' mosque of the
town of Mustafabad by Sayyid 'Atau'llah Raja Husaini, entitled Sharafu'l-Mulk at the
instance of Qutbu'd-Din Ahmed Shah-II.”

Jam-e-Masjid with beautiful, tall and distinguished architectural minaret, its beautiful
arches and having a bigger prayer area also proves that there must be enough Muslims
in this village in 1453 CE so that the ruling authorities shown their interest to build this
beautiful historical Jam-e-Masjid. Also, name Mustafabad itself give us the confidence

4
to prove that the inhabitants of this village must be Muslims during the construction
period of this masjid in 1453 CE.

Below references also provide us evidence to confirm the fact that the name of the
village was Mustafabad.

(1) Archaeological Survey of India, EPIGRAPHIA INDICA – ARABIC AND PERSIAN

SUPPLEMENT- 1975, page 30.

(2) Studies in Indian place names, Volume 9, page 76.

(3) Islamic India studies in history, epigraphy, onomastic and numismatics.

(Now it needs to find out in which year the name of the village changed from
Mustafabad to Tankaria and by whom? Hints: (1) As mentioned in the above reference
books and Government records, including the Archaeological Survey of India, the name
of our village in 1453 CE was Mustafabad (2) As per the statement of Dr Z.A. Desai,
Director of Epigraphy working under Archaeological Survey of India, Mustafabad has
received new names during the pre- Mughal period, means before 1583 CE. (3) In
Heber’s Journal as mentioned below Reginald Heber stayed in Tankaria on April 09,
1825 CE, it means in 1825, CE the name of our village was Tankaria. Conclusion: New
naming of our village from Mustafabad to Tankaria must be after 1453 CE and most
probably before 1583 CE).

History of Tankaria village as mentioned in the Gazetteer of the Bombay

Presidency (Published in July 1899)

The Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, Volume IX, Part II, Gujarat Population:
Musalmans and Parsis published in July 1899. This volume on the People of Gujarat
includes two parts. Among two parts, the first part, “THE MUSALMANS” contributed by
Khan Bahadur Fazlullah Lutfullah Faridi, Assistant collector of customs, Bombay. In this
part, it is mentioned that Captain Ovans in one of the notebooks of the first Broach
Survey (1818 CE) given an account (Description of past events), which he had from
Vahoras of Tankaria.

According to that description, some of the Marwari prisoners of war were kept as
slaves by a Hindu chief. They were freed in the year 1618 CE by Muslim Emperor
Jahangir. To show their gratitude those Marwaris had become Muslim and in reward
those Marwaris were settled on the waste lands in Gujarat.

5
Information related to newly converted Marwari Muslims recorded by Captain Ovans in
one of the notebooks of the first Broach survey was obtained from Vahoras of
Tankaria. It is understood that wisely and intentionally emperor Jahangir settled those
newly converted Marwari Muslims at largely Muslim populated villages of Gujarat like
Mustafad Tankaria to avoid any difficulties and for the ease of their remaining life as
Muslim.

As mentioned above in the official records of Archaeological Survey of India,

Government of India, Mustafabad Jam-e-Masjid built in the year 1453 CE during the
rule of Muzaffarid dynasty. It is also mentioned in other records that the name of the
village was Mustafabad. It means considerable Muslims were living in Mustafabad even
before 1453 CE so ruling authorities of that period shown their interest and built a very
big and beautiful masjid. Emperor Jahangir (Who freed those Marwari prisoners of war)
was born on 30 August 1569 CE and died on 8 November 1627 CE. He was the fourth
Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 CE until his death in 1627. The conquest of
Gujarat by the Mughal Empire from Muzaffarid dynasty was in 1583 CE. During the
ruling of Muzaffarid dynasty in the year 1453 CE when construction of Mustafabad
Jam-e-Masjid completed, Emperor Jahangir (Mentioned in Captain Ovans note) was not
even born. Of course mentioned converted Marwaris freed in 1618 CE by the Emperor
Jahangir were not original Muslim Vahora. They joined a Muslim Vahora community of
Gujarat specifically the Muslim community of villages like Mustafabad Tankaria.

Note: Captain Ovans real name was Charles Ovans. He was born in 1798 CE and died
in 1858 CE. Both in the Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, published in 1899 CE,
and in the Reginald Heber’s Journal, published in 1828 CE, name written as “Captain
Ovans” He was engaged in a first revenue survey of the Gujarat around 1818 CE to
1829 CE during the British rule in India. Captain Ovans handled superintending the
Land Survey operations.

Some events related to History of Tankaria recorded in the “Reginald Heber’s

Journal” (Published in 1828 CE)

Reginald Heber (Also known as Bishop Heber) was the Bishop of Calcutta. He travelled
from Calcutta to Delhi and from Delhi to Bombay in 1825 CE. He was one of the
famous travellers and treated as a VIP by the British officers in India. During his visit,
most District Collectors and other Government officers met him and were taking care
of him. At some stages of his journey, he has an escort of more than 50 horses.

6
Reginald Heber has started his journey from Delhi in January 1825 CE; he reached his
destination Bombay in April 1825 CE.

On his way to Bombay, he was in Baroda where he was the guest of Gaekwad
(Guicowar) family for a few days. From Baroda, he travelled to Kheda (Kaira) (Kheda
was large military station until 1830 CE). After visiting Kheda on his way to Bharuch
Reginald Heber stayed in Tankaria on April 09, 1825 CE. The name mentioned in the
Heber’s Journal is Tekaria. The route map and Heber’s description were reviewed
carefully. He reached Bharuch next day on April 10, 1825, CE. He reached Kim chokdi
on April 12, 1825, CE. By keeping in mind his travel rate per day, the route map of his
journey and Heber’s descriptions during his stay in Tankaria, it was concluded that
there was no any village like Tekaria near to Bharuch, so it must be Tankaria. First
Edition of the Journal published in 1828 CE, edited by Heber’s wife based on the travel
notes and letters wrote to her by Reginald Heber, so it is understood to have a
possibility of minor mistake. Cambridge University published the latest edition of this
journal.

Also, another interesting thing noted related to Heber’s visit to Tankaria. As per the
description given by Reginald Heber, Captain Ovans (Ovans is the gentleman who met
people of Tankaria as mentioned in the Gazetteer as mentioned above) and Williamson
(Collector of Kheda District) met him and spent some time with Heber, on his way to
Kheda. Captain Ovans gained lots of information related to the people of Gujarat
during his survey work. It is mentioned that Ovans shares his experience with Heber
on his way to Kheda. Description related to Ovans, which is more than a half page in
the Heber’s Journal also give the impression that Heber was impressed by Ovans.
Maybe Heber was advised by Captain Ovans, so he visited Tankaria after his Kheda
visit. It seems that Heber’s Journey was well-planned and well-organized. He visited
most of the important places on his route. His visit to Tankaria gives the impression
that Tankaria should be a well-known village in 1825 CE.

It is mentioned in the Journal that land in the Tankaria and its surround villages were
mainly cultivated with cotton. The road was not in good condition in 1825 CE. Heber
also observed that the trees in this area were not so tall comparing to other areas.

The collector of Bharuch District sent 02 Vahora officers to guide and help Heber on his
way to Bharuch. After reviewing Heber’s description, it is believed they should be
Daudi or trading Vahora, and they should not be Vahora Patels (Landholders).

7
 Part 02: Oral History (Oral Tradition)

Edited By: Nasir Ahmed Lotiya & Mustak Suleman Daula

We met 07 Tankarvis in the year 2007. Our narrators belong to Well-Known 04 groups
of families (04 Divisions/ Bhag) of our village.

(Note: Among below mentioned 07 Narrators, Ahmed Bhaloda, Musa Laheri and
Abdullah Bhad passed away. May Allah grant them a superior place in Jannatul
Firdaus).

Of course, they have seen Tankaria closer than us, and they have more information
about our History. The most common view of all our elders based on the chain of
communications through generations is as below.

“Some people of Dholka-Dhandhuka villages relocated to Tankaria.” No one knows for

how many years. From the groups of those relocated families and the locations of their
houses in Tankaria, they were divided into 04 main Divisions. (1) Bhad (2) Bukhad
(3) Vaja (Mota Vaja) and (4) Suleman Vaja (Sullu Vaja Vaja or Nana Vaja). By those
04 divisions, the Tankaria was well-known as “Village of Four Brothers.”

NOTE: Dholka and Dhandhuka both are in the Ahmedabad District of Gujarat, India.
Dholka is 50 KM away from Nadiad in the direction of West. Dhandhuka is located
nearly West side of Dholka. The distance between Dholka and Dhandhuka is 62 KM.
Dholka and Dhandhuka were known as twin towns.

Tankarvis, who visited Dhandhuka for the business, told us that still there are same
names and surnames as we have in Tankaria.

Let us meet our elders.

Suleman Vaja (Sallu Vaja or Nana Vaja)

Ahmed Adam Ismail Mohammed Bhaiji Bhaloda

Date of birth: 04-01-1926

He belongs to Suleman Vaja division. His elders were known as Abhram Mitha, later on
they were known as Bhaiji, and now they are known as Bhaloda.

Below is a summary of what he said.

We belong to Sallu Vaja. Mostly our elders like to use a word Sallu Vaja. Very few use
Suleman Vaja. In our groups of families starting from Kagrinatha Street, Bhaloda

8
Street, Nagia Street, all Bhuta families, Isapbapu Banglawala, Delawala, Miyaji,
Dhoriwala, Wadiwala, Dabger, Sattar and Bhaloda belong to Sallu Vaja. Some family
members from Sallu Vaja relocated in the Vatersa village. They were Chati, Joli,
Bhaloda and Bhuta.

Recalling his past, he said before the independence of India, one English officer came
to Tankaria, he wants to start one English Medium School, but all the people of
Tankaria opposed his proposal. People of Tankaria were favouring Mahatma Gandhi's
Swadeshi movement. Finally, they started English Medium School in Hansot village.
Some of our students were studying in Bharuch, and some were in Baroda. Tankaria
High School started in 1952, in Safri building. There was no power supply at that time.
We got the power supply in 1961-62. People were very poor during those times. We
were working on farms. “I studied up to class 05 in the Urdu Medium School.” Our
School known as “Tankaria Urdu Central Boarding School.” Students from neighbour
villages and even students from Vagra, Jambuser, and Ankleshwar were coming to
Tankaria for the study. They were living in the “Central Boarding,” later on that
building was known as “Santole.”

(Note: As recorded in the report of the Director of Public Instruction “ There were only
a few Central Urdu Primary boarding schools for Muslims in the year 1917. Among
these are the District Local Board and Municipal Urdu primary school at Nasirabad in
the central division and central Urdu primary (Boarding) school at Tankaria in the
northern division of the Bombay Presidency).

At that time, Gulam master Bapuji was our Primary School teacher. His father Isap
Bapuji was a member of the District Local Board. He was living in Bharuch. Ibrahim
Master Rober Munshi, Gulam master Delawala, Musa master Delawala, Patel master,
Mohammed master Ghodiwala, Bakor Munshi and one Munshi from Dayadara were
working as teachers.

Recalling his memories he provides some information based on legends. He heard from
his elders that Hazrat Hafez Kabir R.A., who was a great saint from Village Zangar,
informed his followers that when I leave this world, one saint will come from the West
side. You will see him wearing a safety Jacket (Bakhtar). He will lead my funeral prayer
(Namaj-e-janaja). Later it was observed that the saint who lead the funeral prayer was
Ashraf Shah R.A. from Tankaria, who buried at Nana Padar at Tankaria.

He said that he heard from his elders that in 1856 CE, Engineers of British railway came
and began surveying for the laying railway tracks at Tankaria. Railway tracks supposed
to be laid near the Dargah of Songarshah R.A. ( The Back portion of The Tankaria High
9
School) and near to the Dargah of Pir Nashirshah R.A. (Between Tankaria and Kamboli).
Engineers got many troubles in those particular areas. At last some wise people of
Tankaria provided advice that these Saints are not happy with railway tracks to be laid
near them. Then it was decided by British Engineers to reroute the railway tracks and
took a big curve near the Nandevar Village. (Note: The Bombay, Baroda, and Central
India Railway (B.B. & C.I.) was a company incorporated in 1855 CE to undertake the
task of constructing a railway line between Bombay and Vadodara. B.B. & C.I completed
the work in 1864)

About Golden Days

He said, in our time thick clothing called Jota/ Khadi were used by poor peoples, and
some rich people used to wear Patawala lengha (In his words). The price of Khadi was
a 5 Paisa/ yard (vaar). We must have to wear Khadi because of Gandhi’s direction.
When our clothing got a tear, we used to stitch it by using another small piece of cloth.
It might be of different colour and quality. It was called, “Thingdu.” In our early days
women used to wear Saari, some wear Lugdu (His wording). Recalling his memories,
he said at that time cost of deshi Juwwar (Great millet) for 40 kg was 01 Rupee. Some
poor people used to eat Red Juwwar. The price of wheat for 20 kg was 01 Rupee. The
cost for one tin of cooking oil was 06 Rupees and very interesting price of gold for 10
grams were only 20 Rupees. It means the cost for 1 gram was 2 Rupees only. Mostly
Bajri/Bajra (Pearl millet) purchased from Jambusar, Vagra, Padra and some interior
coastal villages of Vagra and Jambusar.

In those days, poverty ratio was too high. Most of the villagers used to go to the farm
for labour work (Majuri). When people go farms to work, the owners of the farms
collected the foods from the worker's home and at noon bring it to farms. We used to
eat together. Some of the workers used to eat rotla (Flatbread thicker in size made
from millet) with Onion, green chilly or Jaggary. Some used to eat red chilli powder
mixing with cooking oil and used to eat with rotla. When he was saying those words,
his eyes became wet. He said, “we were much happier compared to our present day
life. We look after our neighbours very well, and we used to share our happy moments
or time of sorrow with each other.”

At that time, there were shops owned by Umerji Asmal Khoda, Musebhai Bhim, Ahmed
Ishap Ipli, Alli Ishap Ipli, and Ahmed Muse Dhabu. At that time dry coconuts, dry
dates, Jaggary were very cheap. At that time, for marriage we used bullock carts
(Gadu) for Baraat (Jaan). Sometimes we used 20 to 25 carts. For women, there were
separate carts. While raining season, we used to go by walking for the Baraat.
(Marriage)
10
Mode of transportation

Recalling his memory, he said at that time we did not have any Buses or other
vehicles. If we have to go to Bharuch, Karjan or Mumbai, first we need to go to the
Varediya railway station. Early in 1932-33, the only available transportation from
Tankaria to Varediya was bullock carts. There were three small bullock carts Known as
Damania. The owners of the bullock carts were (1) Fada dada (2) Muse Ahmed Bhuta
and (3) Dadabhai Bajibhai Karkariya. The existing fare was one Anna per passenger. At
that time, a railway fare from Varediya to Bharuch was 7 Paisa. All local Trains have
eight compartments. During that period, Railway operated by B.B. & C.I. Company.
During the Second World War, in 1940-41 railway employees demanded to raise their
salary and gave an ultimatum to the Government and inform the rulers that from the
midnight we will stop all the trains on its way. At that time, British rulers ordered the
military to shoot at sight.

After some period instead of bullock carts, Horse carriages (Ghoda Gadi) were used as
transportation. In the beginning, there were three horse carts. The owners were (1)
Umerji Muse Abhram Daula (Grandfather of Mustak Daula) (2) Vali Muse Ghodiwala
and (3) Adambhai Tilva. After two to three years, there were associated 20 carts. Fare
from Tankaria to Varediya was 2 Anna.

During 1933 to 1940 in the dry season, there were two buses owned by Joli Seth run
between Tankaria to Bharuch. The bus route was Tankaria to Parkhet to Pariej to
Tralsa to Kothi to Kasad to Umraj to Sherpura to Fanta Talao at Bharuch. The fare was
7 Anna. Joli Seth's real name was Mohmedali Joli.

Now another division.

Bukhad

Haji Musa Yusuf Bagas Adam Laheri D.O.B. 12/11/1931

Haji Gulam Adam Abhram Ise Khandu D.O.B. 9/4/1936
Haji Ibrahim Valli Yusuf Kaduji previously known as Rupiyawala

Above, three elders belong to Bukhad division.

According to them Miru, Laheri Street (Old name was Gotli Maholla), Kaduji Street
(Known as Goder Street at that time), Sapa Street, Sutariya, Daula, Barkaliya,
Babariya, Morli, Varu, Dashantwala, Natha, Nathalia including Ibrahimbhai Nathaliya,
Vasta, Laundrywala, belong to Bukhad division.

11
Recalling his past, Musa Yusuf Laheri said, “When Second World War started, at that
time I was eight years old.” Dawood Munshi from Sarod was his Primary School
teacher. In those days, Red Juwwar was brought by British officers from America. In
1946, there was a cholera epidemic spread in Tankaria. Two children (1) Gulam Vali
Abhram Manubarwala and (2) Son of Kara Ise Bhim were passed away due to cholera.

In 1948, there was a significant famine. At that time, most Tankarivis sold their brass
vessels, goats, and buffaloes. At that time, so many villagers left Tankaria and
relocated to the different areas in the Gujarat, mainly in Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
Some of the examples are Ahmed Adam Karbhari & Mohmed Umerji Dhabu relocated
to Mumbai. Chhela brothers, Musebhai Morli, and Alibhai Morli relocated to
Ahmedabad.

They said when they were children most of the boys up to 4-5 years of age were not
using shoes or slippers. Senior citizens used to have Turban (Paghadi) on the head and
young generation at that time used to have Turkey Cap.

They said during that time in our village percentage of poverty was nearly 75. In the
tone like they were conveying their message to the youngsters, they said, “we had dry
rotla with a piece of onion, green chili, red chili or Jaggary as our food, but we were
too strong and hardworking grown up children.” During those times instead of
shampoo, we used black earth clay (Matodu) for washing hair. Before starting the rainy
season, we kept the stock of black earth clay at home for four months. According to
them, in Mota Padar there were a big well and bullocks drew water with a leather
bucket. Sanchawala Ishebhai was the operator, and he drew water from the well. In
his words “Kos chalavta hata.” The largest Tamarind Tree (Aambli) in Tankaria at that
time was known as Hajjar's Aambli.

Currency Units:

1 Paisa (Also known as Paise) = 3 Pies.

1 Anna = 4 Paisa = 12 Pies.

16 Anna = 64 Paisa = 192 Pies =1 Rupees.

1 Dhabu = 2 Paisa.2 Dhabu = 1 Anna. In general 50 Paisa referred as 8 Anna and 25

Paisa as 4 Anna.

12
Now another division.

Bhad

Abdullah Adam Ise Bagas Isap Bhad

Ali Ismail Ahmed Musa Bhama nowadays known as Ali Kamthi

Above elders belong to Bhad. Below is a summary of what they have said.

All Lalans, Ipli, Handli, Khida, Voraji, Khandhia, Bhad, Halalat, Chhela, Rakhda, Seth,
Dhabu, Gulam Patel, Dahelvi, Kadva, Chamad, Jatta, Chapti, Ganda, and all people of
Suthar Street belong to Bhad division.

Even at that time Bhad was the largest group of families, and they have their own
Graveyard (Kabrastan) known as “Bhadbhag Kabrastan” Till today it is known as
Bhadbhag Kabrastan. Our elders told us that Bhad meant Big, Motu.

There were five big families in Bhad (Subdivisions of main Bhad division) among that
five, one family left Tankaria and stayed at Kamboli. Up to early 80's if anyone died in
Kamboli village belong to that group of Bhad, he or she buried in Bhad Bhag graveyard
of Tankaria. In 1901, one member of Bhad who left Tankaria and stayed at Kamboli
had donated well to people of Tankaria to obtain water. According to them, our village
Panchayat started in 1940. Ishap Bapuji was the Sarpanch till India became
independent. There were 13 members of the Panchayat.

Hashampir Kabrastan (Graveyard) laid in 12 Bigha (Vingas) (1Bigha = 20 Bissa. In

traditional Gujarati people used to say “1 Vinga na 20 Vassa.”)

That time our surrounding village people from the west up to Samni village, East up to
Haldarwa, North up to Makan, South up to Hingalla, were used to call wise community
leaders of Tankaria village to resolve any matter of dispute among them.

Now another division.

Vaja (Mota Vaja)

Ibrahim Adam Musa Ismail Bapu Amanji Bhama nowadays Known as Lariya Circle

He belongs to Vaja. (Broadly known as “Mota Vaja”) According to him, Malji, Tilu,
Madhi, Dedka, All Lariya family, All Pipla Street, Abhli, Jet, Bhoja, Chavdi, Bha,
Manman (Whole Street), Jariwala, Dahya, All Ghodiwala family, Gordhan, Bacharwala,
and Khoda belong to Vaja. He said that we used to play Gilli Danda, Sawra, Kharpat,
Khokho, Kabaddi and Cricket when we were children.

13
In 1952, under the leadership of Muse Kara Gordhan (Now he is in Pretoria-Africa) we
made the Panj Maholla Committee (Committee for five Streets) we bought big degs
and all utensils to be utilised during the marriage. (Deg is the most commonly used
utensil to prepare community dinners in India).

He asked, do you know why we are known as Circle?

Then he replied himself, My father Adam Musa Ismail Lariya was working as Talati at
Palej, and then he got promoted and became a Circle Inspector for that region. My
father was known as Lariya Circle. Adam Musa Lariya Circle actively involved in the
construction of Masjids in Sagbara and Zaghadia, and he played a significant role. He
was also actively involved in the construction of Musafirkhana at Ankleshwar. He
retired in 1969 and joined in Tankaria Masjid- Madrasa committee up to his death in
1987.

Part 03: Tankaria and Tankarvis

Coordinated By:

Famous personalities of Tankaria

Freedom Fighters: Mahatma Kabir, Musa Esa Captain, Adam Ismail Mustafabadi,
Ibrahim Nayak, and Dr Ali Ghodiwala.

Freedom Fighter Musa Esa Captain: “Communication from Mr. Musa Esa Captain,
Honorary Secretary of Anjamane Shaukatul Islam and Khilafat Committee Tankaria,
India received by the Permanent Mandates Commission of United Nations on June 7th,
1930” and it was discussed at the meeting.

This official record can be found on page 216 of the minutes of the seventeenth session
held at the United Nations headquarter at Geneva from June 3rd to June 21st, 1930.

Musa Esa Captain was imprisoned in the Nagpur Central Jail for around seven months.
Gandhiji was also in the Nagpur Central jail.

Doctors: Dr Alibhai Ghodiwala, Dr Shukla Girjaprashad Shankar, Dr Mohammad I.

Miyanji, Dr Yusuf M. Khoda, Dr Basir I. Manman, Dr Munaf Miyanji, Dr Salim Miyanji,
Dr Lukman Hingallawala, Dr Siraj Khandhiya, Dr Sajid Banglawala, Dr Mariyam
Manman, Dr Sameer Miyanji, Dr Imran Bachha, Dr Suhel Majid Ambherwala (Dentist),
Dr Azaz Kidi, Dr Yusuf Chhela (Bharuch), Dr Ikram Bachcha and Dr Firoz Aiyub Miyanji
(Canada)

14
Poets: Adam Tankarvi, Aziz Tankarvi, Daud Khandhiya, Iqbal Ughradar, Kadam
Tankarvi, Mahek Tankarvi, Mubarak Adam Ghodiwala, Munshi Tankarvi, Sadik
Ughradar, and Zakir Tankarvi.

Politicians: Dr Ali Ghodiwala (Member, Bombay Legislative assembly and President of

Bharuch District Muslim League), Isap Bapuji (Member, Bharuch District Local Board)
Mohammed Musa Master (Member, Bharuch District Local Board), Yakub Popat
Vakil/Lawyer (Member, Bharuch Taluka Panchayat), Gulam Umerji Ghodiwala
(President, Bharuch Taluka Panchayat), Saeed Bapuji (Member, Bharuch District
Panchayat), Makbul Abhli (Member, Bharuch District Panchayat) and Abdullah
Ghodiwala/ Lalla. (Member, Bharuch Taluka Panchayat).

Note: Information related to Dr Ali Ghodiwala and Mohammed Musa Master has taken
from Patel Directory, Compiled by Ibrahim Dadabhai “Bekar’’.

Organisations/ Institutes :

Gram Panchayat Tankaria

Village Panchayat leaders (Sarpanchs): To be edited.

Mustafabad Industrial Training Institute- Tankaria(M.I.T.I)

Edited By: Nasir Lotiya

The Mustafabad Industrial Training Institute Tankaria (M.I.T.I) established in the year
1986. It was the first I.T.I. in the Bharuch Taluka. In 1986, there was no any I.T.I.
even in Bharuch city.

I.T.I. Tankaria affiliated to National Council For Vocational Training (NCVT), New Delhi,
Ministry of labour and Welfare Government of India. Institute's trained Technicians are
working all around Gujarat. Some are working outside Gujarat and some are working
abroad. In the year, 2005-2007 Institute also trained employees of "National Thermal
Power Corporation" (NTPC) in the Fitter trade. Some of Institute reputed I.T.I. Passed
Technicians are Rafiq Dahya and Mohammed Mukerdam. Both successful Building
contractors trained by Tankaria I.T.I in the Draftsman Civil trade.

Many Institute Trainees are working with Gujarat Electricity Board (G.E.B) Our
Electrician (Helper) Hanif Godar working with G.E.B. also trained by this Institute. So
many Fitter trade's Technicians trained by this institute are working in the reputed
leading companies in Gujarat.Some of our I.T.I. Passed Technicians are also working in
gulf countries.

I.T.I. (N.C.V.T.) certificates are valid all around the world. I.T.I. passed Technicians
with experience are mostly working in the Gulf Countries and other Countries with
good salary. I.T.I. Passed Technicians with good experience are eligible for
Immigration on point-based visa systems (i.e. Canada, New Zealand etc.)

15
 HISTORY OF TANKARIA (Another Perspective)

Edited By: Shakil Abdullah Bha

Narrated by the late Ahmed Munshi

Our narrator is Mr Ahmed Munshi (known as Chati Master – “Dada”). He was

recognised by Ibrahim Dadabhai “Bekar” in his Patel Directory, written in 1955. After
college, Mr Ahmed Munshi started his career as a teacher in 1940 at Rander (near
Surat). He started with a monthly salary of Rs 15, but amazingly, he managed to save
Rs 10. Bekar was his principal at MMP (Madrasiya Muhammadiya Piperdiwala) School at
the time. On 14 June 1941, he was transferred to the village of Ikhar to work. He
relocated to Ikhar in 1948 because of his work. Later on, in 1955, he was once again
transferred to Tankaria High School. His wife, Mrs Amina Munshi was also a teacher.
She retired in 1978.

In 1980, Mr Ahmed Munshi was selected as a Tribal Subclass Officer. He was also the
President of the Tankaria Retired Members Committee until 1985 and worked together
with the district Panchayat to solve the pension problems of retirees. In December
1985, he moved to Chicago, USA with his wife and son, Mr Hanif Munshi, but
remained an active member of the Gujarat State Pension Committee, Vadodara.

Mr Ahmed Munshi passed away on 13 March 2012 in Chicago at the age of 90 after a
short illness. He was the second oldest man in the history of Tankaria. He lived all his
life helping others and never felt tired smiling. Whenever you saw him, he was always
smiling. Whenever he met anyone, he displayed the smile of an innocent child who
had met one of his most loved friends. In his life as a teacher, he not only helped
his students reach high goals in life, but he helped their parents too. He helped the
poor villagers where he was just a visitor or a teacher in the school. He helped the
needy and illiterate people in filling out forms and getting their benefits from the
Government. Even at the age of 88 – 89, he worked at the local masjid as a volunteer.

16
Now, read the history of Tankaria in his words, the words of a person who has seen
Tankaria more closely than anyone else. TANKARIA, was a village of four brothers:
BHAD, BUKHAD, NANA VAJA (younger VAJA) and MOTA VAJA (older VAJA). People say
that the brothers came from near Ahmedabad. No one knows exactly where. These
four brothers laid the foundation stone for the village of Tankaria many, many
centuries ago. Therefore, most families in Tankaria belong to these four brothers.

NANA VAJA
BHAD BUKHAD MOTA VAJA
(SULEMAN VAJA)
Bapuji, Bhaloda,
Bhuta, Chati,
The people of Mota The people of Ghodiwala family
Dehlawala,
Padar belong to Pipaliya Street belong to Mota
Jolly, Miyanji, Paya,
Bhad* belong to Bukhad Vaja
and Sapa all belong
to Nana Vaja
Famous person Famous person
from this group: from this group:
Ismail Umarji Bhuta Dr Alibhai Patel

* This is why Mota Padar Graveyard is called Bhad Bhag Graveyard.

As we are talking about the family tree, let’s look at some details about the other
families of Tankaria. Some of the biggest families in Tankaria are Banglawala,
Bhutawala and Ghodiwala. Let’s look at the Banglawala (Miyanji) family. Our author,
Mr Ahmed Munshi’s full name is

Master Ahmed Vali Musa Muhammad Umarji Miyanji

Many, many years ago there were two huge bungalows in Tankaria; one was in the
West, which belonged to Musa Bapu Dehlawala, and the other was in the East, which
belonged to Bagas Umarji Miyanji (remember this).

17
 In the Miyanji family, there were two brothers: Muhammad Umarji and Bagas Umarji.
Bagas Umarji’s sons were called Banglawala. Why? Because he had a big bungalow!

MUHAMMAD UMARJI MIYANJI BAGAS UMARJI MIYANJI

His family were later called

His family were later called “Chati”
“Banglawala”

MUH
MUSA BAJIBHAI YUSUF VALI MUSA AM- ADAM
MAD
No son.
One

MUHAM- daught
VALI ISMAIL YUSUF IBRAHIM DAWOOD AKUJI MUSTAN
MAD er in
London
, UK
He
moved
to
Vatarsa
perman
ently.
That’s
ADAM
why
there is
a big
Chati
family
in
Vatarsa

Now let’s look at the other big family of Tankaria the Bhutawala family.

18
 IBRAHIM BHUTA

YUSUF
KARA IBRAHIM BAJIBHAI IBRAHIM UMARJI IBRAHIM ISAP IBRAHIM
IBRAHIM
It was said that,
every week, Kara
Ibrahim used to
visit the four
corners of the
Ismail Umarji
village on his
Bhuta
horse and looked
after the public
wells. He also
stopped the illegal
possession of land
Musa Ismail
Bhuta

Note: We request anyone with more information about the Bhutawala family to send it
to sab@mytankaria.com. Please provide us with full names and any other interesting
facts.
Religious Institutions

Jam-e-Masjid

Jam-e-Masjid, Mota Bazaar, Tankaria: Tankaria’s Jam-e-Masjid was built during the
rule of King Qutub Abdul Muzaffar Ahmed Shah Sultan. The masjid (mosque) was built
under the supervision of the King’s young representative, Sayyed Ataullah, on 9th

19
Rabi-ul-Awwal Hijri 857. This means that the masjid is over 570 years old and,
according to some elders’ knowledge, the foundation of the minaret (shown above) is
about 35 to 45 feet deep into the earth. This huge masjid was reconstructed in 1977.
It can accommodate approximately 1,500 – 2,000 people at one time.

Who were the Big Four?

Back then, we did not have any banks in Tankaria, so the masjid’s money was kept
safe in a locker inside the masjid. No one could open the lock until the ‘Big Four’ sat
together. Who were the ‘Big Four’? They were mutawallis (trustees) from the four
bhags (parts) of Tankaria. Godar Dosa was one of them and he had the responsibility
of keeping the key to the locker. He was very popular amongst the villagers. It was
said that he had a license to cultivate opium for medicinal purposes. The other
members of the four were: Kara Ibrahim Bhuta, Ismail Isa Dehlawala and a fourth
person (please let us know if you know the name of the fourth person).

Masjid Locker
Four Mutawallis
Ismail Isa
Godar Dosa Kara Ibrahim Bhuta ?
Dehlawala

Note: We request anyone with more information about the Godar family to send it
to sab@mytankaria.com. Please provide us with full names and any other interesting
facts.
Tombs

Jam-e-Masjid, Mota Bazaar, Tankaria:

Tankaria is bordered by the tombs of Valis (people who devoted their lives to Almighty
Allah and Islam). On one side, we have Hasham Pir Baba, on the other side we have
Ashraf Shah Baba and on the third side we have Jumma Shah Baba. Even inside the
Jam-e-Masjid there are two tombs. There are some very interesting facts about these
people and their lives.

A few decades ago, when they were rebuilding the Jam-e-Masjid, a stone was removed
from one of the tombs accidentally. What did people see? People who were present at
the time saw fresh flowers and an unstained cloth. It seemed like someone had been
buried just a few hours ago. Ibrahim Sapa Hafezi, who was in charge of the

20
reconstruction of the masjid, immediately asked the builders to put the stone back.
Next time that you visit Tankaria, don’t forget to visit this tomb.

Ashraf Shah Baba, Nana Padar, Tankaria

1. People say Ashraf Shah Baba used to work as a muazzin (the person who makes the
call to prayer) at the Jam-e-Masjid. He was well known and very well respected
amongst the community. One person (name unknown) who used to live with Ashraf
Shah Baba assisted him to welcome the many guests that visited him and helped him
with his daily duties.

Ashraf Shah Baba

In that time, Tankaria was not connected by roads. People had to travel to Bharuch or
Varediya by foot or by horse. The person who was living with Ashraf Shah Baba would
pick up and drop off the guests from and to nearby transportation points. Ashraf Shah
Baba always asked him “Did you ask for anything from my guests?” He answered “No”
all the time.

One day Ashraf Shah Baba asked him to go to Bharuch. During his walk to Bharuch, a
thought came in his mind, a thought to act like a blind person. So, he walked a few
minutes with his eyes closed. When he came back from Bharuch, Ashraf Shah Baba
asked him “Did you get blind at a certain point in your journey?” He said, “Yes”. Then
Ashraf Shah Baba said “It wasn’t in your luck”. People say it was a gold brick that he
missed during those few minutes that he acted as a blind person.

2. In another incident, people saw something that was unbelievable. Jam-e-Masjid has
a big hoz (pool for making ablution) and a deep well. This well has now been covered

21
up for safety reasons, as it was no longer needed due to the improvements in the
village water system. In those days, we did not have pipelines and people had to go to
the well to bring water for drinking and other activities. In our masjid, this
responsibility was given to Ashraf Shah Baba, who had to pull the buckets of water and
fill up the hoz. He had to do this every night to make the hoz ready for making wudhu
(ablution) at the next morning’s Fajr salat (prayer).

However, people noticed something very strange. They never heard the sound of the
bucket coming out of the well (as a bucket tied with a rope makes a distinct noise
when pulled on the metal ring). Still, they would find the hoz filled with water every
morning. So, the people decided to investigate this situation out of curiosity. One day,
they hid behind the wall and watched what Ashraf Shah Baba was doing. Ashraf Shah
Baba continued praying after Isha salat. He did not stop until midnight. When everyone
left, he went to the well. What people saw was unbelievable. The water level rose on
its own and Ashraf Shah Baba filled the hoz in no time.

How? Why? Ashraf Shah Baba devoted most of his time to the ibadat (worship) of
Allah. He did not want to waste his time and people say that was the reason Allah
helped him with his job. He rose the water level up so that His believer could spend
most of his time in ibadat.

If we assess our life, we realise that we make excuses for not doing ibadat. We
miss our salat because we have to go to work or we have to look after our
businesses and shops. We have forgotten what our Prophet (peace be upon him)
taught us. May Almighty Allah guide us to the right path. Ameen.

People and Life

Tankaria has always been first in new developments, whether it be higher education,
sports, art or literature. Tankaria has produced more teachers, engineers, sportsmen,
doctors, pharmacists and writers than any other village in the Bharuch district. Dr
Alibhai Patel, a Tankarvi, was the first doctor in the Vahora community. The first
Vahora to play at national level was a Tankarvi. A Tankarvi was one of the very few to
go for further education to England before independence. Amongst the villages of the
Bharuch district, the first high school was opened in Tankaria. These honours go to
Tankaria because our forefathers worked really hard. They had vision, enthusiasm,
strong belief in themselves and above all, love … love for their land. So, let’s talk about
these people, their lives, their hard work and their love for Tankaria.

22
Before independence (1947), education at the Tankaria School was primarily in Urdu.
Gujarati was an optional subject. Isap Bapuji’s building was used for boarding.
Students from the Bharuch district would come for Urdu education. The Bharuch
District Board would provide them with free boarding and food. After independence,
the Government of Gujarat made Gujarati a mandatory subject and Urdu became
optional. So, the boarding building was no longer needed. It was later used as a house
by Isap Bapuji’s children.

Isap Bapuji was the Sarpanch (elected leader) of Tankaria for a long time. He was a
very kind and popular person. His grandson is Saeed Bapuji, a teacher at Tankaria
High School and local leader.

In approximately 1857, two brothers from the Kabir family came to Tankaria. They
were freedom fighters. At that time, it was illegal to shelter any person who was
involved in activity against the British Empire. Despite this, Musa Ibrahim Khoda
granted them shelter. The two brothers asked every family in Tankaria to give one
child for freedom fighting. Their famous slogan was “Beta ki jaan khilafat may dedo”
(give your son’s life in the political protest campaign).

The life before independence was hard, but inflation was at its lowest. A teacher’s
monthly wage was Rs 15.

Rs 1 = 16 Ana.

500g Meat = 4 Ana.

Grocery = Rs 1.

3 storey building for rent = Rs 5 per month.

Tankaria to Varediya horse carriage ride = 4 Ana.

You can imagine how cheap everyday items were. Transportation was very cost
effective too. We didn’t have buses and the nearest railway station was Varediya
(thanks to the British Government). There were horse carriages to carry passengers
from Tankaria to Varediya and vice versa. Devram Mota was the President of the Horse
Carriage Association. Six to seven passengers could travel at one time. The cost was 4
Ana per person. One trip would make Rs 1.7 for the horse carriage owner. Since the

23
last train was at 8 pm, and all the commuters would come at that time, they would
take horse carriages to get to Tankaria.

Don’t we still follow that tradition? The last train still comes at the same time … only
the name has been changed. Now it is called the Bhaktani Express from Vadodara to
Palej. Buses and rickshaws have replaced horse carriages and it costs Rs 7 – 10 to get
to Tankaria from Palej.

As we are talking about the people and their lives, let’s talk more about some
Tankarvis in detail.

“Janaab” Muhammad Valli Pavariya: Back then, he was the personal assistant of the
Nawaabs* of Junaghad. He had the kind of reputation that people would dream of. He
had a car and, whenever he visited Tankaria, people used to say “Hati jazo, Pawariya
ni car aavi” (move out of the way, Pavariya’s car is coming). You can read more about
his son, “Janaab” Ibrahim Muhammad Valli Pavariya, in our extract from Bekar’s Patel
Directory. He represented the Gujarat state at the National Cadet Cops.

Adam Ismail “Mustufabadi”: He was a very famous name among Tankarvis. He had
a clothing business. After coming from Africa, he started a clothing business in
Tankaria. On any occasion in Tankaria, you could expect his speech. You can see his
picture in our Sweet Memories photo album.

Dr Alibhai Patel: You can read about his life in our extract from Bekar’s Patel Directory.
He was the first certified doctor from the Vahora community. His clinic was in
Ankleshwar. He was also the president of the Muslim League.
The people of Tankaria still remember the wedding ceremony of his son. When his son
got married, he invited the entire village and hired a team of professionals for the
fireworks display. There were fireworks in every street of Tankaria. In addition, he
hired the ‘Gayakwad Band’ (a very famous musical group during those days) for
the entertainment of the villagers. There was a ‘Fulku’* all night long.
After India gained independence from its British rulers, he went to Pakistan with his
family.

Khatki Munshi: He was the principal of Tankaria Primary School. He was very clever
and would remember the hand writing of a person just by looking at it once. He would
recognise that hand writing the next time he saw it. His daughter was a doctor and she
lived in Ahmedabad for a while. According to the latest information, his family now

24
lives in Chicago, USA. His granddaughter is married to Gani Seth Khandhiya’s son,
Fayaz Khandhiya.

Musa Mukardam Patel: There is a very interesting story about Musa Mukardam Patel.
According to our narrator, Mr Ahmed Munshi, Musa Mukardam Patel used to keep a
diary with him all the time. After every Zohar salat he would ask the Dariya
Vahu (midwife) about any new born babies in the village. He would write down the
birth dates of those babies along with their family names. On the fourth day, he would
ask the Dariya Vahu what names were given to those babies by their families and he
noted them down in his diary too. Mr Ahmed Munshi said that he had seen his date of
birth in Musa Mukardam Patel’s diary.

Musa Mukardam Patel had two sons. Ahmed Patel and Ali Patel.

What interesting people … what caring natures … hats off to them!* Nawaabs: Before
independence, India was divided into territories. Every territory was ruled by a King or
Nawaab who would come under the direct control of the British Empire.

* Fulku: A tradition in which a group of people would play traditional music

using drums. It usually starts after sunset.

_______________UNDER CONSTRUCTION________________

25