PESHAWAR, Dec 30: Fiery orator and prominent religious scholar Maulana Mohammad Amir, popularly known as Maulana Bijli Ghar, died after protracted illness here on Sunday. He was 85.

Maulana Mohammad Amir, a close aide of Maulana Mufti Mehmood, the father of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, was famous for his witty and satirical speeches.

His speeches neatly packed with quotes from Quran and Hadith, proverbs and anecdotes precisely reprimanded the audience and the Muslims at large for their ignorance of Islamic teachings and indulging in vices. Maulana Bijli Ghar had received his religious education from Darul Uloom Sarhad in Peshawar in 1950s.

The late Maulana was a great orator and was popular among the people from different walks of life. The audio cassettes of his recorded speeches are still sold like hot cake. He was considered the most serious critic of the country’s political system.

Maulana Bijli Ghar was sent behind the bars several times for his criticism of the government’s policies in public speeches and Friday sermons. He even did not spare Maulana Fazlur Rehman because of his support to Benazir Bhutto government in 1993.

He had remained provincial chief of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam. He was a confidant of Mufti Mehmood and was the main source of Mufti’s communication with PPP founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Maulana Bijli Ghar had played an active role during the Pakistan National Alliance movement against Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s government. He also took an active part in the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD).

The Maulana was great admirer of Taliban government in Afghanistan and criticised western parliamentary democracy. That was why he refused to contest any election.

In one of his famous speeches, he said that because of presence of women MNAs he did not wish to be a member of the assembly. After the arrival of computer, his fiery speeches were converted to compact discs (CDs) which not only carried terse and witty messages to the people, but also proved a source of amusement for them.

The funeral of Maulana Bijli Ghar will be held at Qayyum Stadium in Peshawar Cantonment at 11am on Monday.

He has left behind three sons and three daughters to mourn his death.—Bureau Report