Abdul Haq (urdu Scholar) - Educational and Political Activities

Educational and Political Activities

Following the establishment of the Osmania University by the Nizam Osman Ali Khan, Asif Jah VII of the Hyderabad State in 1917, Haq moved to Hyderabad State to teach and help build the university. All subjects at the university were taught in Urdu, and under Haq's influence the institution became a patron of Urdu and Persian literature and linguistic heritage. Appointed as chairman of the department faculty of Urdu, Abdul Haq emerged as a leading literary critic and accomplished writer in the intellectual life of Hyderabad. He published numerous works of Urdu poetry, as well as treatises on linguistics, Islam, history, politics and philosophy. Widely respected as a scholar and teacher, Abdul Haq was a scholarly critic who provided criticisms of modern Urdu works and encouraged his students to develop literary skills and appreciation of Urdu. Following his retirement in 1930, Haq worked to compile and edit a comprehensive and authoritative English-Urdu dictionary. Haq was also a leading figure in the Anjuman-i-Himayat-i-Islam, a Muslim socio-political body of intellectuals. He also led the Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu (Organisation for the Progress of Urdu), which had been founded as a group of Urdu scholars, intellectuals and students. Initially focusing on intellectual subjects and work, in 1930 Haq led the group in protest against a campaign by Indian nationalists to promote the use of Hindi as the national language of British India. Haq became a fierce critic of Indian leader Mohandas Gandhi and the Indian National Congress and joined the All India Muslim League led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah.