Akhtarul Wasey

In 2013 Wasey received a Padma Shri award (a national honour by the President of India for outstanding achievers among Indian citizens) from President Pranab Mukherjee, honouring him as a distinguished academician, specializing in the multidisciplinary study of Islam and Indian Muslims. Wasey is the recipient of the first Sir Syed Ahmad Khan Award for Interfaith Understanding, Aligarh Alumni Association, New York Tristate (US), Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Award in 1996, Award from Urdu Academy, Delhi and UP Urdu Academy on "Sir Syed Ki Taleemi Tehreek" in 1985. He also received a Fulbright Fellowship in 2008, the first ever to a member of the Jamia academic fraternity and the first in the field of Islamic Studies in India. Prof. Akhtarul Wasey has been appointed by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee as the 12th Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India w.e.f 4 March 2014 for the tenure of three years. Since 1957, he is the first Commissioner from Urdu speaking community. This is a constitutional authority under Article 350B of the Constitution of India to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for linguistic minorities under this Constitution and report to the President upon those matters at such intervals as the President may direct, and the President shall cause all such reports to be laid before each House of Parliament, and sent to the Governments of the States concerned. Prof. Wasey also conferred Makhdoom Quli Medal by the President of Turkmenistan in Ashgabat on 15 May 2014 for his contribution in the field of Islamic Studies and Urdu language and literature. He has also been conferred with the highest award of Daktur-e-Adab (equivalent to D. Litt) by Jamia Urdu, Aligarh on 20 May 2014 in recognition of his remarkable services for the promotion of Urdu language. He earned another Sir Syed Ahmad Khan Award for his contribution to Muslim Education by the American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI) in December 2017. In 2018 he got Lifetime Achievement Award by Prestegious Institutue of Objective Studies and Ghalib Award from Ghalib Institute, a premier literary institution for his outstanding contribution to Urdu Language and Literature.

Wasey began serving as lecturer in Jamia Milia Islamia since 1977 and also worked as the director of Zakir Husain Institute of Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and later became head of the Department of Islamic Studies and dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia.

Akhtarul Wasey (born 1951, Aligarh) was a professor of Islamic studies who taught at Jamia Millia Islamia (Central University) in New Delhi. Currently he is president of Maulana Azad University, Jodhpur, India, and professor emeritus in the Department of Islamic Studies in Jamia Millia Islamia. As a versatile personality he assumed many formal and informal designations. Apart from his academic achievements he regularly appears on TV, debating on issues related to Islam and Muslims, and has delivered over 400 radio and 300 TV talks along with extensive and frequent writings in different news papers and magazines. He is considered to be a Muslim spokesperson among academicians.

Wasey was born on 1 September 1951, at Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, as the first child of six, to Hairat bin Wahid (father) and Shahida Hairat (mother), and married to Mrs. Sabiha Wasey in 1975, having three daughters and a son Mr. Kamran. His early education was at Primary School No. 16 which was run and managed by the local municipal board. For secondary education, he was admitted to the City High School of Aligarh Muslim University then he went on to attend Aligarh Muslim University and earn the degrees of BA (hons.) Islamic studies, Bachelor of Theology, Master of Theology and MA (Islamic studies) from Aligarh Muslim University in 1971, 1975, 1976 and 1977 respectively. He also completed a course in the Turkish language from Istanbul University in 1983.