Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran

About Us


Idara Minhaj-ul-QuranIdara Minhaj-ul-Quran, a Pakistan-based international organization working to promote peace, tolerance, interfaith harmony and education, tackle extremism and terrorism, engage with young Muslims for religious moderation, promote women's rights, development and empowerment, and provide social welfare and promotion of human rights.

In order to promote and propagate true Islamic teachings and philosophy, revive Islamic sciences, and for the moral and spiritual uplift of Muslim Umma, dissatisfied with the existing religious institutions and organizations and their narrow-minded approach, Dr Qadri founded Minhaj-ul-Quran in 1980. Headquarters of IMQ are situated in Lahore. Vigorously pursuing its well-defined objectives and spreading its comprehensive and all-encompassing sphere of activity, including welfare, education, promotion of love culture and spiritual uplift all over the world, it is probably one of the largest non-political, non-sectarian non-governmental organizations in the world. Since its establishment on 17th October 1980, it has rapidly grown and, within less than 30 years, its organizational network has expanded to more than 90 countries worldwide. Minhaj-ul-Quran is unmatchable for its rapid growth and no contemporary religious or political organization or movement has spread worldwide in such a short span of time.

Major Objectives

Elaborating the aims and objectives of IMQ, the founding leader Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri stated:

"The primary aim of the Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran is to bring about a comprehensive and multidimensional change in the society which at the same time ends the academic and ideological deadlock and revive, once again, the exterminated moral and spiritual values (of Islam), and also exalt the Muslim Umma to an admirable and respectful status among the comity of nations by a continuous struggle based on glorious foundation laid down by the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) on the universal principals of Love, Peace and Knowledge."

Minhaj-ul-Quran is not a movement based on just imaginary and impracticable ideology and philosophy but, on the contrary, is based on a comprehensive and practicable ideology. Its leadership has not only introduced the ideology but also provided a detailed strategy to be practically put into practice. Moreover, it aims at reviving the true values and principles of Islam, eliminating the social, cultural, ideological, moral, spiritual, economical, legal and political decline of Muslim Umma in particular and the whole mankind in general. Love, peace, harmony, universal brotherhood, justice, equity and prosperity lie only in the revival of these values. With this well-defined goal fixed, the IMQ has laid down four major objectives to achieve.

  • Dawa and Propagation of True Islamic Teachings
  • Reformation of the Moral and Spiritual Affairs of Umma
  • Revival of Islamic Sciences
  • Promotion and Renaissance of Islam

The Distinctive Characteristics

The IMQ holds strong discrimination from its contemporary religious organizations and parties in several different ways. It is unique and different from every other organization by virtue of its constitution, program, establishment, span of work, field, work style, and over and above all, its objectives. It can be distinguished from other organizations on the following five basic discriminatory grounds:

  1. All-embracing and all-encompassing struggle
  2. Sincerity of faith and devotion, and spiritualism
  3. Piety
  4. Changing the society for good
  5. Universalism

Stages of the Minhaj-ul-Quran Movement

The struggle of Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran has been classified into stages inevitable for its expansion and development:

1. First stage of IMQ struggle is 'Propagation' in which the ideology of IMQ is introduced to the people through Dawa. The whole world is breathing heavily under the threats of terrorism and bloodshed. The idiosyncrasies of extremism, fanaticism and radicalism generate terrorism. Unfortunately, Islam is being presented as responsible for all terrorism around the world. IMQ is taking practical measures to present to the world the true Islam through preaching inter-faith dialogue and harmony, striving for promoting culture of tolerance and moderation and promoting the cause of human rights, justice and equity at global level. IMQ's Dawa program encompasses all these aspects and gives a call for global peace, security, love and harmony among the communities inhabiting the earth. Following are the different modes of its Dawa work.

a. Call for affiliation with Allah Almighty. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Remembrance of Allah Most High
  2. Ardent love for Allah Almighty
  3. Godwariness
  4. Obedience to Allah Most High
  5. Worship and Devotion

b. Call for linking up with the Holy Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace be upon him). This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Ardent love for the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).
  2. Obedience to and follower-ship of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).
  3. Observance of polite manners and submissiveness for and veneration of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).
  4. The gnosis of the exalted station of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).
  5. Supporting the (din of) the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).

c. Call for turning towards the Holy Quran. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Developing a link with the Holy Quran based on love.
  2. Abundant recitation of the Holy Quran.
  3. Meditating and contemplating the Holy Quran.
  4. Following the commands and injunctions of the Holy Quran.
  5. Preaching the commands and injunctions of the Holy Quran.

d. Call for seeking knowledge. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Promotion and publication of knowledge.
  2. Honouring and practicing knowledge.
  3. Attaining modern disciplines.
  4. Setting up learning associations.
  5. Awakening awareness and cognizance.

e. Call for brotherhood and fraternity. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Love and Forbearance.
  2. Moral Beauty
  3. Protecting and safeguarding human rights.
  4. Mutual help and cooperation.
  5. Eschewing sectarianism

f. Call for collective struggle and interests. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Consultations and obedience to the leader.
  2. Calling for righteousness.
  3. Discipline and organizing.
  4. Steadfastness
  5. Altruism and Sacrifice

g. Call for consolidation. This target is achieved through the following:

  1. Da'wa, preaching and publicity.
  2. Reasoning for true application of Qur'an and Sunna to modern life
  3. Reviving and promoting din.
  4. Attaining to peace and security.
  5. Restoration of Islam's identity.

2. In the second stage, 'Organization', all those who join the IMQ and get ready to work for the IMQ objectives are put into organizational structure. They become regular members and are tasked to discharge their Dawa responsibility according to the instructions laid down by the central leadership. The work at this stage is successfully carried out by setting up branches and centres on national, provincial, district, city and town levels in and outside the country.

3. Third stage concentrates on 'Education and Training'. All the members and workers known as Rufaqa' attend training sessions and camps where love for peace and justice, human dignity and equity is spiritually injected into their souls to bring them inner peace. That in turn brings about outer peace in society at large, through their pious and superbly moral behaviour towards their fellow human beings, irrespective of colour, race or creed. These training programmes are centrally controlled under direct guidance from Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri. The IMQ leadership believes that it is hard training that guarantees achieving the calculated results. The training programmes emphasize inculcating spiritual values and higher morality equipping the workers with personalities that spread love and peace through their natural behavior and style. The education and training sessions are held according to the following schedule:

  1. Daily sessions of remembrance of Allah at unit level.
  2. Weekly sessions of Salutation on the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).
  3. Weekly educational assemblies at sector level.
  4. Monthly training camps at tehsil level.
  5. Quarterly training camps at district level.
  6. Bi-annual three-day retreat (itikaf) at divisional level.
  7. Annual ten-day retreat (itikaf) at central level
  8. Monthly Irfan-ul-Quran session
  9. Ten-forty-and-sixty day learning courses

4. Forth stage 'Implementation' signifies the struggle for the practical realization of social, welfare, cultural, legal, educational, religious economic and political vision and ideology of IMQ. In this stage, using all the training obtained, the members of IMQ lead by example by taking an active part in the society to carry out social and moral reform. This struggle comprises two phases: formative phase and completion phase.

  1. The formative phase comprises all those activities and practical steps and measures that are essential to mobilize the masses towards achieving the goal.
  2. The completion phase consists of measures to attain the results and put the plan into action.

5. Fifth stage 'Reformation' refers to consolidation of results achieved by IMQ and transforming them into actual and permanent change thus achieving reformation and renewal of the systems. This reformation focuses its advancement in the following directions:

  1. Ideological Reformation
  2. Religious Reformation.
  3. Educational Reformation.
  4. Moral and Spiritual Reformation
  5. Social and Cultural Reformation.
  6. Societal and Institutional Reformation.

The IMQ forums

Under the umbrella of his nascent organisation, Minhaj-ul-Quran, Shaykh-ul-Islam established the Jamia Islamia Minhaj-ul-Quran in Lahore on 18th September 1986, now known as College of Sharia and Islamic Sciences (COSIS), an institute of Islamic Studies which would provide scientific, modern and progressive subjects alongside traditional, classical Islamic sciences, a blueprint for the mass educational system that was to follow. Thousands of students have graduated from this institution by now, hundreds of which are scholars engaged all over the world in spreading Shaykh-ul-Islam's message of peace and modern scientific vision of Islam under his advice and continuous guidance. Various other wings of Minhaj-ul-Quran were established, including Minhaj-ul-Quran Youth League (MYL) on 30th November, 1988, Mustafawi Students Movement (MSM) on 6th October, 1994 , Pakistan Awami Lawyers Movement (PALM) on 20th February 1997, and crucially, the Minhaj-ul-Quran Women League(MWL), the first of its kind associated with any religious organisation in Pakistan on 5th January 1988, promoting the rights and interests of women in a strongly male-dominated society with full participation of the womenfolk. The Minhaj-ul-Quran Ulama Council is another most dynamic forum of IMQ that liaise with the religious scholars and authorities for coordination and organizing various programmes in order to work for greater harmony and unity among different religious sects of the society. This forum has proved instrumental in bringing about inter-sect harmony and cohesion and diluting and removing tensions if any.

In a country with a literacy rate of under 50%, Dr Qadri considered education to be a priority and established the Minhaj University Lahore (MUL) chartered by the Government, to provide higher education that would be accessible to the poor also. A remarkable large-scale education project, the Minhaj Education Society (MES) then followed in the early 1990s, which established hundreds of educational centres throughout Pakistan, accessible to both low income families and females. In the field of social welfare and disaster and poverty relief, Shaykh-ul-Islam formed a new sister organisation in 1989, later to be known as the Minhaj Welfare Foundation (MWF), which has benefited victims of natural disasters such as the Tsunami affecting Indonesia; the Bam earthquake, Iran; the South Asian earthquake in Pakistan, as well as various developments and educational projects in Pakistan and other underprivileged countries.

When the Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran started its operations across Pakistan for the revival of Islam, the Muslims living in the foreign countries in general and Pakistani expatriate community in particular got attracted due to its efforts for the establishment of peace and inter-faith harmony. The Da'wa work of Minhaj-ul-Quran International was started long before its organizational and administrative network was established. In order to communicate its message effectively across the five continents of the world, the Directorate of Foreign Affairs (DFA) was established in 1985 for better coordination. It is the result of untiring efforts of this Directorate that this network has spread across 90 countries of the world. This Directorate is ever busy strengthening and consolidating this network in foreign lands.

Farid-e-Millat Research Institute (FMRi), housing a huge reference library, a Research Hall, composing section and record room is a unique set-up that provides research assistance to Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri in his multiple projects in progress simultaneously. This institute was established on 7th December, 1987. A team of twenty highly qualified and skilled research scholars work tirelessly on various projects under the most enlightening guidance of Shaykh-ul-Islam.

The Minhaj-ul-Quran Press and Publications Department is tasked with the publication of books of Shaykh-ul-Islam and works in close collaboration with FMRi. It has so far published about 360 voluminous books of Shaykh-ul-Islam and sold hundreds of thousands number of copies of each book through its sale system in country and abroad. Its responsibilities also include timely printing of calendars, diaries, posters, portraits and other material of any kind related to printing. All the books of Minhaj Education Society are also produced by IMQ Printing Press. It is a self-sufficient set-up equipped with modern printing machines, folding and stitching machines and plate-making facility along with binding machines ensuring high quality products. The department also has its art and graphics section manned with most skilled designers. They produce designs of titles of the books, posters of Minhaj-ul-Quran for various programmes, titles of journals, advertisements, calendars, diaries, broachers and invitation cards.

Production Department: The main responsibilities of this department include recording of all the lectures delivered by Shaykh-ul-Islam, their editing and production on DVDs, VCDs, ACDs, video and audio cassettes, protection of master copy and their ordering in addition to fulfilling all demands of the IMQ sale centres. The master copies of all his addresses have been saved in a specific order. The activities of the department include audio/video recording, editing, preparation of documentaries and liaison with cable TV and other TV channels. Special CDs and DVDs are prepared for and delivered to TV Channels and cable networks. The Art and Film branch of the department is dedicated to design advertisements and make documentaries of different departments of IMQ besides making documentaries on Shaykh-ul-Islam.

Shaykh-ul-Islam has dedicated the entire income from the sale of his books and recorded lectures to Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran forever and does not charge even a penny in the form of royalty.

Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran is busy on strong footing in the spread of Islamic teachings and safeguarding the faith of youth. A vast network of computer systems has been put in place to interlink various offices and departments of the Central Secretariat of Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran. With a view to linking up various dispersed Islamic nationalities into one coherent whole and showing the true face of Islam, Minhaj Internet Bureau (MIB) has been established. The www.minhaj.org is the very first central website of Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran containing complete introduction of IMQ, its organizational structure, branches and departments. News and information regarding various activities being performed at the Central Secretariat or inside or outside of Pakistan are regularly posted on this site.

The Central Secretariat of IMQ

The Central Secretariat of IMQ came up at 365-M Model Town Lahore in mid 1980s. Spread over more than 8264 square metersm this is a state-of-the-art headquarter of IMQ, a nucleus of all the organizational features and management functions of planning, organizing, directing, coordinating and controlling activities. It has offices for central leadership of IMQ and for its various other directorates and forums like Planning, Construction, Administration, Research, Communication, Production, Event Management, Media, Membership, Public Relations, Human Resources, Press and Publications, Da'wa, Training, Education, Magazines and Periodicals, Audit and Accounts, Finance, Minhaj-ul-Quran Women League, Minhaj Youth League, Minhaj Ulama Council, Mustafwi Students Movement, Minhaj Welfare Foundation, Minhaj Education Society, Gosha-e-Durood, and the Directorate of Foreign Affairs through which the Secretariat is linked up with all the overseas IMQ Organizations and Formations. Apart from these Directorates the Secretariat also provides administrative and financial support to its chartered Minhaj University Lahore (MUL), College of Sharia and Islamic Sciences (COSIS), the Minhaj College for Women and the Tehfeez-ul-Quran Institute. This grand administrative and organizational set-up runs the IMQ affairs all over the world through a grand body of leadership and supervision rooted deeply into a foolproof decision making system that enables it to function smoothly and ensure productivity at all levels.

The IMQ Supreme Council is the elite body governing the affairs of Minhaj-ul-Quran International all over the world. The ultimate authority is vested in the President Supreme Council. The Secretary Supreme Council coordinates functioning of the Supreme Council and enjoys the administrative authority of the Secretary General or the Nazim-e-Aala IMQ assisted by five Deputy Secretaries General or the Naib Nazim Aala. Central Amir-e-Tehreek is the custodian of IMQ Constitution and supervises monitoring and evaluation, audit, complaints and accountability departments along with Ulama and Mashaikh. He is assisted by Naib Amir-e-Tehreek in supervising these activities.

The Decision Making Phenomena

The IMQ's decision making phenomena are interlaced in a most refined hierarchy of the decision making bodies representing all levels of the IMQ organizations existing around the world. The Supreme Council is the Final Authority of IMQ headed by the responsible to the Patron-in-Chief IMQ Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri. The General Council IMQ comprises all the Nazims or heads of the directorates and forums and the senior appointment holders of the organizations at Tehsil level. It is headed by the Patron-in-Chief IMQ or President Supreme Council in his absence. The decisions of the General Council are carried by two-third majority vote. The 63 member upper house of consultation (Markzi Majlis Shura Khas) is the policy making body of IMQ led by the Patron-in-Chief. Nazim-e-Aala IMQ conducts its affairs as Secretary. It takes the decision by simple majority vote. The members of lower house of consultation (Markzi Majlis Shura Aam) include all the provincial, divisional, tehsil level umara, nazims and heads of forums. It is also headed by the Patron-in-Chief. All policies pertaining to field organizations and its workers are put up in Majlis Shura (Aam) for its sanction and approval. It has the accountability power to scrutinize and take disciplinary action against irregularities at all levels including Central Executive Council (CEC) and Central Working Council (CWC).

The Central Executive Council (CEC) is headed by Nazim-e-Aala and all Naib Nazims Aala, all Central Nazims, Umara and Nazims Provinces and Azad Kashmir, Heads and Secretaries of forums in the country are its members. It prepares proposals for Majlis Shura, Supreme Council and General Council and may recommend amendment in the IMQ constitution. It has also the powers to approve annual budget of all forums and their projects. All Directorates of the Central Secretariat and field organizations in the country are responsible to CEC for their smooth functioning and productivity. The CEC meets quarterly. The Central Working Committee (CWC) comprises heads or nazims of all directorates in the centre besides editors of the Magazines and periodicals and presidents and secretaries of all in-country forums. It is headed by Nazim-e-Aala. It works on behalf of CEC and uses its powers and authority. Majlis-e-Muntazima is another decision making body that works as the representative of CWC in disposing off the day-to-day matters of the central secretariat. Still higher to Majlis-e-Muntazima is the Review Council enjoying the power to review and decide matters put up as appeal against decisions taken by Majlis-e-Muntazima.

This huge organizational set-up generate colossal amount of work in the form of periodical meetings of General Council, Majlis-e-Shura, CEC, and other bodies. These meetings and well stipulated programmes under various directorates require conference halls. To cater for this significant requirement, the Central Secretariat has an air-conditioned Conference Hall that can accommodate about 200 participants. The lighter programmes including morning assemblies are generally conducted in this hall. For larger programmes, however, where number of participants exceeds 200, a newly constructed commodious Suffa Hall is used for the purpose. The Library Hall of the FMRi is another facility that is used for such programmes.

Achievements

In less than three decades, the Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran has made tremendous achievements in various fields of work. Taking its work span, time span and geographical work span, the results achieved so far are dazzlingly astonishing. Detailed information in this regard requires volumes of written work. We can have only the synopsis of the IMQ performance in terms of solid results it has produced under the most dynamic and galvanizing leadership of Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri.

  1. In a short period of 30 years, the IMQ has established its educational, welfare & organizational set-up outside Pakistan in 74 countries with 69 educational and cultural centres, while number of its membership network over the globe has risen to 93.

  2. The IMQ Organizations at tehsil level and union council have been set up in all the four provinces of the country and Azad Kahsmir.

  3. Its registered membership has gone as high as 2,80,000 worldwide.

  4. Struggling hard against ignorance and pursuing the target of establishing 1,000 schools and colleges in the country, the Minhaj Education Society has by now set up more than 600 schools imparting education to 170,000 students through 5000 teachers all over Pakistan.

  5. It has established one chartered university as well, the Minhaj University Lahore (MUL), which is placed in 'W' grade, the highest rank granted by the Higher Educationn Commision of Pakistan. IMQ has a well chalked out plan to raise one chartered university in each of the provinces and one in Azad Kashmir in addition to one international university.

  6. There are 5,000 libraries/CD exchanges and mass education centres being run in the country under the auspices of IMQ.

  7. Its organizational network ever expanding and deepening to the UCs level, more than 300 monthly Irfan-ul-Quran gatherings have been set up by its Da'wa Directorate where renowned scholars of IMQ deliver talks on the Quranic guidance in removing difficulties and issues of the modern age. Similarly the Da'wa Directorate is also running Irfan-ul-Quran courses for masses and completed more than 500 three-month-long courses till now. Moreover this is also running Come to Learn Islam courses at a large scale.

  8. The Minhaj-ul-Quran Women League closely following its laid down targets has set up 242 Irfan-ul-Quran circles and more than two thousand Durood Circles. Moreover, they have organized 478 Irfan-ul-Quran courses along with Come to Learn Islam courses and other conferences and seminars They are also functioning to provide Quranic guidance to the womenfolk.

  9. Over 40,000 men and women attend the annual Collective Itikaf in the sacred month of Ramadan at Township Lahore every year. They are imparted training in spiritual elevation, character building, moderation and tolerance techniques directly by Shaykh-ul-Islam. In 2010, when the worst flood struck the half of Pakistan, Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri cancelled this historic retreat and instructed all participants of Itikaf and workers of IMQ to serve the flood-stricken people.

  10. Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has, over the years, brought about a culture of love for the Beloved Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace be upon him). Pursuing this objective he promoted hymnody (sessions of chanting Na'at, the poetic eulogies to glorify the Holy Prophet [blessings and peace be upon him]) and Sama' gatherings in the holy month of Rabi-ul-Awwal (the month when the Prophet Muhammad [blessings and peace be upon him] was born). One of the salient features of this culture is serving common man with Ziyafat-e-Milad (extended meals) within the first 12 days of Rabi-ul-Awwal. The celebration consists of daily gatherings at the IMQ headquarters where recitations of the Quran take place along with the Na'at sessions followed by food served to every participant. An open invitation is served to everybody rich or poor to attend the Ziyafat. When food is served everybody sits and eats together, breaking barriers of wealth and poverty, removing all inhibitions and uniting people under the supreme banner of mercy of the Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him).

  11. The annual International Meelad Conference is held at Minar-e-Pakistan Lahore on the 12th night of Rabi-ul-Awwal and lasts till the early morning of 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal for the celebration of Milad-un-Nabi (blessings and peace be upon him). This event has become a regular feature for last two and a half decades. Hundreds of thousands of people from all around the world attend the gathering. Rejoicing on the occasion, all these participants are served with Ziafat, the grand extended food. The night commences with the recitation of the Holy Quran, followed by Na'at chanting to glorify the Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him). Then Shaykh-ul-Islam delivers a lecture, followed by invoking greetings and salutations upon the Beloved Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace be upon him). This is one of the largest gatherings of the Muslim Umma around the world telecast live on satellite channels and internet for the benefit of all the Muslims around the world.

  12. The most soothing feature of this culture of love for the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) is invoking durood, blessings, and salutations, on the Messenger of Allah. For this purpose, Gosha-e-Durood has been set up at IMQ central headquarters Lahore. More than thirty-one billion (31,00,00,00,000) times salutations have been invoked on the Holy Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) at this Gosha-e-Darood so far. Following the line, Durood circles have come up in thousands in streets of the towns where the salutations are invoked on the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) and are deposited with the central directorate.

  13. Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has authored 1000 books out of which 430 books have been published. His works are being translated into different foreign languages as well such as English, Arabic, German, Danish, Korean, Norwegian etc.

  14. 5000 lectures by Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri have been delivered and are available on audio video cassettes and different CD formats. Over a 1500 lectures have been produced on CDs and DVDs and are available on all the Minhaj-ul-Quran sale centres around the world. His lectures sold so far run in millions.

  15. Fighting poverty in the country, Shaykh-ul-Islam formed a new sister organisation in 1989 for social welfare and disaster and poverty relief, later to be known as the Minhaj Welfare Foundation (MWF), which has benefited victims of natural disasters such as the Tsunami affecting Indonesia; the Bam earthquake, Iran; the South Asian earthquake in Pakistan, as well as various developments and educational projects in Pakistan and other underprivileged countries. Aid worth crores of rupees has been distributed so far among the victims.

  16. The construction of a huge four-storey orphanage known as Aaghosh to house 500 orphans has been erected at Township Lahore. Already commissioned, Aaghosh is functional providing children with the umbrella of love, care and education to foster them into useful and balanced citizens.

  17. A heavy-budgeted institution known as Bait-uz-Zahra, is under construction at Township Lahore. This will complete within next few years and provide residence as well as education for the needy and talented girls.

  18. Minhaj Welfare Foundation arranges scholarships for those poor and needy students who are otherwise very intelligent and competent but due to lack of resources cannot get education. Under Minhaj Welfare Foundation, Student Welfare Board was established for this purpose. Scholarships are given to poor and needy students for secondary and higher education. The students benefiting from this scheme are in thousands studying at Minhaj schools and colleges. Millions of rupees have been spent on thousands of students so far. A large number of donors are given direct access to the schools to monitor progress of their respective donees.

  19. Eid Gift and Ration Scheme was started by MWF to provide relief to the destitute. Under this scheme, ration, sweet and food stuff are distributed among the poor on the occasions of Eids including Meelad-un-Nabi (blessings and peace be upon him). Millions of rupees have also been distributed among the sufferers of drought in the province of Baluchistan. The plans for provision of ration on permanent basis were also launched incurring huge budget.

  20. The total number of Minhaj Free Clinics throughout the country is 110. The establishment of this network has cost Rs. 3,30,00,000 and 550 thousand people have, so far, benefitted from this.

  21. Minhaj Welfare Foundation established five hospitals in different cities of Pakistan to provide better health facilities to the helpless and the poor.

  22. There are around 6 million blind people in the world today. The number of blind people in Pakistan is also increasing. Keeping this situation in view, Minhaj Welfare Foundation (MWF) started holding free eye surgery camps in the backward and far-flung areas of Pakistan. According to the prevalent concept of eye-camp in Pakistan, it is getting oneself checked up by a doctor one day and getting a prescription of medicine. Whereas annual free surgery eye camps are held under the banner of Minhaj Welfare Foundation benefiting thousands of patients each year.

  23. Arrangement of collective marriages by the Minhaj Welfare Foundation has become a feather in its cap for last few years. Collective marriages are also arranged not only in Lahore but also in other cities of the country. The branches of Minhaj Welfare Foundation undertook this project with great zeal and determination. The marriages of 630 girls have been arranged by Minhaj Welfare Foundation. These marriages cost rupees 9,45,00,000. The cooperation of local wealthy individuals extended to the Minhaj Welfare Foundation is a sign of trust in the organization.

  24. More than half of Pakistani population is deprived of clean drinking water today. Unclean water is available for drinking at most of the places giving birth to fatal diseases. Given this growing need of clean drinking water, Minhaj Welfare Foundation has installed 1500 water pumps across the country costing Rs. 7 million. The water pump installation campaign has covered numerous districts in all the four provinces of the country.

  25. The MWF has arranged Free Legal Assistance for the exploited/abused women. This is to rehabilitate the women sent to prison for failing to pay the fines/penalties or for other reasons and provide them Free Legal Assistance. The objective is also to provide them legal cover at police stations for safe and fair proceedings of their cases; develop a powerful, effective program to expose police atrocities and restrict injustice at police stations. In addition, women in Dar-ul-Amaan (House of Safety/Protection), Orphanage or Mental Hospitals are provided legal aid. The MWF works for creating awareness about the significance of Legal Assistance through seminars and presentations and struggles to remove social discrimination and ensure restoration of women's social status.

  26. The IMQ has launched sewing machine scheme as well to enable the poor women earn their living through sewing clothes. It is a very flourishing job within the Pakistani industry. A considerable number of people earn their living through this skill. Therefore, MWF launched a Sewing Machine Scheme to provide the destitute women with the machines. It facilitates them earn a respectable living and meet their basic domestic needs.

  27. But great achievement is the change that has taken place in peoples' hearts and minds towards promotion of peace and harmony in the society. The IMQ has considerably reduced sectarianism due to its dynamic struggle launched for this purpose. Inter-faith dialogue too has brought people of two faiths closer. The IMQ has definitely achieved a degree of moderation, tolerance and promotion of human dignity and restoration of human rights and women rights through its Da'wa, Training and organizing programmes in progress in country and abroad. This is heartening to see that people have started understanding the message of IMQ and very bright prospects can be visualized in near future.

  28. Peace for Humanity Conference: It was on September 24, 2011, you saw Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri in Wembley Arena, where some 12000 people had gathered to attend peace for humanity conference. The conference launched a campaign to get one million people to sign an online declaration of peace by 2012. According to BBC: "Normally it's pop stars who attract the big crowds at Wembley Arena. Today it is the renowned Islamic scholar Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri. You can even see posters of him on the buses travelling through the streets near the stadium. But his message is a serious one. He preaches that there are no conditions under which extremism and the violence it endorses can be excused. It's a message that has found a big audience here at Wembley but one which has ironically made him the subject of death threats from those who don't believe in peace. " The audience heard the pre-recorded messages of support from, amongst others, Prime Minister David Cameron, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, opposition leader Ed Miliband, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams. And there were prayers for peace from representatives from a number of different religions including the Bishop of Barking, the Rt Rev David Hawkins, Jewish rabbis and representatives from the Hindu, Buddhist and Sikh faiths. The declaration of peace included a call for democracy and good governance in the Muslim world, respect for human rights, and alleviation of poverty throughout the world.

  29. UN grants 'Special Consultative Status' to Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran: Recognizing the efforts and achievement of IMQ in the field of education, social welfare and humanitarian development the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) has formally granted the 'Special Consultative Status' to Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran. UN ECOSOC consultative status allows NGOs to attend UN conferences and meetings, submit written statements and reports, make oral interventions, and host panels in UN buildings. Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran was recommended by the Committee on NGOs at its 2011 regular session and formally recognized during the UN Annual session. This award of special status at UN speaks of the global stature Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri has been bestowed upon for his love for humanity and his exalted services he has rendered to the interfaith cohesion and inter-communal integration at international level.

  30. Anti-corruption Long March: On 23 December, 2012 we witnessed the signature "save the state, not politics" campaign of Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri launched while addressing an ocean of people gathered at Minar-e-Pakistan Lahore. : "We reject the corrupt electoral system of Pakistan. " He elaborated his message and put forth his 7-point demand during Long March, in the sea of people surging into the sit-in at D-Chowk Islamabad, asking the government to step down and step up the process towards real democracy under articles 62, 63 and 217 of the constitution of Pakistan, reconstituting the ECP and putting a neutral caretaker government in place. However, in Pakistan, politics means continuing with the corrupt electoral system. The venom of corruption has eaten deep into the vitals of its institutions-the ECP, the parliament, the constitutional amendments, the political parties and the governance. Under the curse of corruption, the corrupt elements in power quite duplicitously employed the ruse of an agreement-the Islamabad Long March Declaration (ILMD)-signed by the PM of Pakistan and all the leading politicians. Later, the corrupt, most brazenly and blatantly, backed out of ILMD. The custodians of the corrupt system-the corridors of power-dubbed Dr Qadri coming after years from abroad, was up to derailing the democracy-a conspiracy against the system.

    The people of Pakistan and those endeavouring for a change have once again been duped and hoodwinked. Those who saw a hidden hand behind the historic long march fell prey to what Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri called the corrupt system of electioneering to vote the corrupt to power. That is what Dr Qadri forewarned them at the beat of the drum, risking his life and the lives of the poor millions who glued to him during the hazardous and chill-bitten Long March. Yet the most strikingly peaceful and disciplined Long March at the D-Chowk and Dr Qadri's waking-the-dead stance have stamped the veracity of his riling struggle. Contrary to the corrupt rulers and the custodians of the corrupt system, the people of Pakistan felt convinced, believed him and joined him in the historic millions Long March, on 14 January 2013. Those who contested the rigged elections are dressing their wounds they sustained through the bamboozled polling.

    The unfortunate victims of the corrupt electoral system regret today that they mistook Dr Qadri's message and failed to follow him at the ripe time. Today everybody is calling him right and are stretching them up for a mega change based on the signature "save the state, not politics" campaign of Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri that he has ineradicably engraved on the national psyche through a socio-political commotion and the intellectual regurgitation of perceiving the abysmal ground reality. He accomplished a socio-political renaissance in the country-the decades' task-performed only in four extremely cold days-14 to 17 January 2013-of the freezing two months. Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri has enormously succeeded in awakening the masses to the butchery going for the jugular and sucking their blood, and has blown into them the spirit to rise and snatch their rights from the democratic monarchs. He has given a call for morphing millions into billions to wreak hurricanes and wreck the corrupt system with gales of street power.

  31. Minhaj Education City: It is over three decades now when Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri founded the Idara Minhaj-ul-Quran (IMQ) in 1981 and developed an IMQ education complex in the Township of the metropolitan city, Lahore. Over the decades, the IMQ has risen in many dimensions-many new buildings for Minhaj University, College of Sharia & Islamic Sciences, Minhaj College for Women, Jame al-Minhaj, Tahfeez-ul-Quran Institute, Aghosh Orphan House, Suffah Hall and Gosha-e-Durood were constructed, forums like Minhaj Education Society, Minhaj Welfare Foundation, Minhaj Youth League, Mustafavi Students Movement, Minhaj Ullama Council and Minhaj Women League were formed and more than two dozen directorates like Foreign Affairs, Dawah, Training, Research, Minhaj Production, Minhaj Publications, Minhaj Marketing, Sales Center, Minhaj Printing Press, IT Bureau and Minhaj TV were established. These huge establishments have used the secretariat facility and the bastion at Township to its capacity, and are now spilling over the precincts. The dynamic leadership of IMQ has ambitious plans to keep pace with the fast moving modern life, maintain its effectiveness in the field, in Pakistan and the world over. The extending requirements for religious, educational and welfare projects of IMQ need much more area for expansion and development. Therefore, Shaykh-ul-Islam has decided to acquire a 120-acre piece of land in the peripheries of Lahore to cater imminent needs of the coming decades. This piece of land will host a great seat of learning called Minhaj Education City. It is a colossal plan seeking a prodigious architectural set up to translate it into reality that is now being examined and finalized. It has voluminous details to sketch a comprehensive introduction to the gigantic project. Only some of the salient features of Minhaj Education City have been described here to bring forth an image of the visualized future.