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Ibrahim Rahimtullah

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Sir Ibrahim Rahimtullah (1862-1942) was an Indian Muslim leader in the early years of the 20th century. Born into a prominent Ismaili trading family, he became the Mayor of Bombay in 1899.

In 1913, he was elected president of the All-India Muslim League. Abul Kalam Azad hailed his presidential speech at the AIML meeting in Agra as "the first in [Islamic] political literature soaked in Indian nationalism." Riding on waves of worldwide Islamic outrage after the 1911 Tripoli massacre, and the British position of "neutrality" in the matter, the League that year substantially modified its pro-British "loyal" position.

Rahimtullah worked with pro-Congress leaders like Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Aga Khan, and brought in an amendment to the constitution of the League, adding statement 2(d), seeking “attainment under the aegis of the British Crown a system of self Government suitable to India through constitutional means...” This marked an important shift in Indian Islamic attitudes from a position of loyalty to the government, to an alignment with the mainstream Hindu groups like the Indian National Congress.

In 1918, he supported the idea of a Navy to protect the Indian coasts.

In November 1924, he was knighted by the British Raj. A street in Bhendi Bazaar, Bombay is named after him.

References

Ibrahim Rahimtullah Wikipedia