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By Mohammad Arif Ansari

There are very few people in the world who are respected in their lives and live in the hearts of people with respect and honour even after their death. Haji Abdur Razzaq Ansari was one such person who made human service the aim of his life without any discrimination of religion and caste.

His truthfulness, simplicity, humility, sacrifice and service to humanity were the special characteristics of his personality, which set him apart from others. Apart from being a kind teacher and an expert in education and economics, he also made important contributions in the field of society and politics. He suffered the hardships of jail for participating in the freedom struggle and always promoted Hindu-Muslim unity.

His politics was clean and without any bias, and his aim was always to follow the hadith of Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam: “The best among you are those who benefit others”. Abdur Razzaq Ansari was born on 24 January 1917 in Irba village near Ranchi. Due to his father’s poverty, he grazed goats in his childhood and then started weaving cloth as his ancestral work. He also developed a passion for studies, due to which he got enrolled in primary school and completed his studies till middle school. Later, he became a teacher after taking training from Daltonganj and also taught his wife Bibi Nafeerun Nisha.

For him, imparting education was not just a personal objective, rather he made efforts to promote education among the people in the entire area and laid special emphasis on women’s education and established many educational institutions. He made his experiences of poverty and hardship his strength and laid the foundation of Irba Primary Weavers’ Cooperation Committee Ltd. in 1948 to improve the condition of poor weavers. Due to the honesty and strategy of Janab Ansari, weavers were brought back to their traditional work, which resulted in handloom running in every house and prosperity in the lives of weavers.

This effort was not limited to Arba, but also brought revolution in the surrounding areas, and many cooperative societies were established, which even today are a symbol of his leadership and vision. His work is a proof that the honesty and hard work of one person can change the fate of the entire area. His leadership and hard work made market available for the weavers and opened the way for organizing societies.

He had a major contribution in the establishment of Bihar State Handloom Weavers Cooperative Union Limited, Patna, and later he established The Chotanagpur Regional Handloom Weavers Cooperative Union Limited, which even today is a symbol of his leadership. Many societies were formed due to his efforts, and these societies contributed significantly to the social and economic development. He always used to say, “If your voice has power and appeal, then the whole village will walk with you, and the destination will come on its own”. The educational and social services of Abdul Razzaq Ansari proved that with determination and courage, a person can move ahead on the path of success despite difficulties. His leadership benefited not only the Momin community but the entire region. Despite poverty and adversity, he rose from an innocent goat herder to a great leader who changed the lives of the poor and suffering people of Chotanagpur through his hard work and dedication. His selfless service and leadership gave Irba a unique place not only in the region but also globally. His dream was to build a hospital in Irba which would provide modern treatment facilities to the poor weavers. For this, he requested the Governor of Bihar and in 1991 the Governor laid its foundation stone.

Though this dream could not be fulfilled in his lifetime, his sons turned this dream into reality. His sons constructed the hospital buildings, which today functions as Medanta Abdurrazzak Ansari Memorial Weavers Hospital and is a living example of the greatness of Abdurrazzak Ansari. Spreading the light of education in a backward area like Chhota Nagpur was the result of the hard work and determination of Haji Abdurrazzak Ansari. He not only built educational institutions but also laid the foundation of knowledge and awareness whose light spread from generation to generation.

After independence, when Panchayat Raj was introduced, the people of the village elected him as their Mukhiya and appointed him to this post. His hard work and ability brought him to important positions in government and non-government institutions and he had the honour of becoming a member of Bihar Legislative Council twice. His simplicity and selflessness made him a prominent figure in the entire country, who always gave priority to the service of humanity over his own success. He was a true helper and loyal leader of the Momin community and weavers. His contribution to the Momin and Weavers Movement cannot be forgotten, he played a vital role in giving stability and strength to the movement. He was introduced to Abdul Qayyum Ansari through the famous literary personality Suhail Azimabadi, who was the President of All India Momin Conference. The ruling Congress Party appreciated the hard work and honesty of late Ansari and made him a member of Bihar Legislative Council in 1958 and 1985 and Cabinet Minister in the Handloom, Silk and Tourism Department during the regime of Dr. Jagannath Mishra.

The internal differences in the Momin Movement, especially the leadership issues after the death of Ziaul Rehman Ansari had created a sensitive situation, but the farsightedness of Haji Abdul Razzaq Ansari brought the movement to a peaceful resolution.

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