Pakistani Islamic preacher and scholar (born 1972)
Muhammad Raza Saqib Mustafai (Urdu: محمد رضا ثاقب مصطفائی; born 16 March 1972) is a Pakistani Islamic preacher and scholar.[3][4][5][6]
He is the founding chairman of Idara-tul-Mustafa International.[7][1]
He is the Peerzada and Custodian of Dargah Peer Deen Muhammad Mustafai.
He has wide range of following across Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Srilanka, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, United States, etc.
Early and personal life
Muhammad Raza Saqib Mustafai was born to Peer Khwaja Deen Muhammad Mustafai on 16 March 1972 AD same as 30 Muharram 1392 AH in Gujranwala, Punjab.
Mustafai is married to Umm-e-Hamza and they have a son.[8]
Career
Religious views
He is a follower of the Naqshbandi Sufi order and supports the Sufi practices of Mawlid (prophet’s birthday), Urs (commemoration of a saint) and Bay'ah (an oath of loyalty to a sheikh).[9][3]
Religious organizations
He's the founding chairman of Idara-tul-Mustafa International, a religious organization that promotes the Barelvi approach to Sunni Islam and which has branches in many cities of the country, running educational insitutes, social services, etc.
Wedding of the former Pakistan Army chief's son
In November 2018, he performed the marriage ceremony of the Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa's son, Saad Bajwa, in Lahore.[10][11]
Controversies
Alleged antisemitism
In 2016, when Mustafai was on a tour of Australia, he was asked to leave the country because of his antisemitic views.[12][13] The Australian Broadcasting Corporation described him as "a Pakistani Sunni cleric, Muhammad Raza Saqib Mustafai, who has called for the extermination of all Jews from the earth".[12] The Australian said that the person who had asked him to leave was "the imam who organised the tour ... from Blacktown Mosque".[14] The MP Mehreen Faruqi was quoted as saying "I am appalled and absolutely shocked to see someone who is supposed to be a Muslim scholar spouting such hate-filled speech".[15]
