Question

The Aligarh Movement was started by?
A) Mahmud-ul-Hasan
B) Syed Ahmed Khan
C) Nawab Salimullah
D) Mohsin-ul-Mulk

Answer 1

Hint: During the late nineteenth century, the Aligarh Movement pushed for the establishment of a modern educational system for the Muslim population of British India. The name comes from the fact that the movement's core and origins were at Aligarh, Northern India, and specifically with the establishment of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875.

Complete answer:
Sir Syed Ahmad Khan (1817-98) founded the Aligarh Movement for the social and intellectual improvement of Muslims in India. He was an outspoken opponent of mediaeval backwardness and a proponent of a logical approach to religion. He founded the Muhammadan Educational Conference in 1866 as a wide venue for the dissemination of liberal ideals among Muslims. He established a sophisticated school in Aligarh in 1875 to encourage English education among Muslims.

The Mohammadan Anglo Oriental College and ultimately the Aligarh Muslim University grew out of this.
It had such an impact on a number of other contemporary movements that it was responsible for the creation of other socio-religious movements in the nineteenth century. The impact of the Aligarh Movement was not limited to Northern India; it spread throughout the Indian subcontinent over the twentieth century.

The Aligarh Movement made a significant and long-lasting contribution to the political liberation of Indian Muslims. The movement had a significant impact on Indian society, particularly Muslim society, in compared to other powerful but less adaptable 19th-century movements.

The Aligarh Movement was started by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. Thus the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note: The traditionalist Ulemas of the time were the main opponents of the Aligarh Movement, accusing Sir Syed of propagating Western ethics and practises among Muslims. The Aligarh Movement was also opposed by the Deoband school. Detractors such as Pandit Ratan Nath Sarshar, Munshi Sajjad Hussain, and Akbar Allahabadi mocked Sir Syed and the movement in the Awadh Punch.