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Professor B. Sheik Ali, an eminent historian and a former Vice Chancellor at the universities of Mangalore and Goa died on Thursday at a private hospital in Mysuru.
On Thursday evening, at the Mosque at the Muslim Hostel complex in Saraswathipuram, mourners will offer funeral prayers for Prof. Ali, who passed away at the age of 97. The late Professor Ali had a son and a daughter. His wife and two children predeceased him.
Table of Contents
Key Takeaways
- Sheik Ali was regarded as an authority on the monarchs of Mysore, especially Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan
- He passed away at the age of 97
About Sheikh Ali:
Since Sheikh Ali had studied the kingdom of Mysuru extensively under British administration, he was regarded as an authority on the monarchs of Mysuru, especially Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. He wrote or edited 32 books, including Dr Zakir Hussain: Life & Times: A Comprehensive Biography and Tipu Sultan: A Study in Diplomacy and Confrontation, both considered masterpieces in the Urdu literary canon. He also authored British Relations with Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, a Great Martyr. Due to his extensive studies of the Mysuru kingdom under British rule, Sheikh Ali became known as an expert on Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. He wrote or edited 32 books, many of which are considered masterpieces in the history of Urdu literature. These include works like Dr Zakir Hussain: Life & Times: A Comprehensive Biography and Tipu Sultan: A Study in Diplomacy and Confrontation. He has written several other books, including British Relations with Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, a Great Martyr.
Sheikh Ali of Saraswathipuram likes to take early morning strolls around the Manasagangotri campus. To put it another way, he had finished his coursework at that renowned university and graduated with honours. Tolerance for the beliefs and practices of all religions and civilizations, together with nonviolence in the Gandhian tradition, were ideas to which he was deeply dedicated. He made every effort to increase and enhance the opportunities afforded to students from low-income homes. Professor Ali has a PhD in Islamic Studies from Aligarh Muslim University and another from London University. He also has a B.A. (Honors) and an M.A. in Islamic Studies from the University of Mysore. He attended the University of Mysore and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (rank holder). Before establishing and leading the Karnataka History Conference, he taught at Mysore University, presided over the Indian History Section at the XXVIII International Congress of Orientalists in Canberra, Australia, and served as the president of the 47th session of the Indian History Congress in 1986.
Awards and Honours:
Mysore University honoured him with the Golden Jubilee Award for Humanities and Social Science research in 2003 and the Maulana Jauhar Award for Distinguished Scholar, the Rajyotsava Award for Distinguished Educator, and the Mythic Society of India Award for Distinguished Historian. These honours are widely regarded as the highest achievable in their categories. Following his retirement, Sheikh Ali established the Sultan Shaheed Educational Trust, Mysuru, which later established Deeniyat Madrasa and several other schools in the city. The late Professor Ali had a son and a daughter. His wife and two children predeceased him.
He received honorary Doctor of Letters degrees from four universities in his home state of Karnataka: the Kannada University in Hampi, the Karnataka State Open University in Mysuru, Tumkur University, and the University of Mysore (honoris causa). Of his total of 55 novels, 12 are authored in the Urdu language.
Early Life
Prof. Ali, born on November 10, 1925, earned a first rank and a gold medal in B.A. (Hons.) from the University of Mysore in 1945 and the second rank in M.A. from the same institution year, both in 1946. These two feats were completed in the same calendar year. In 1954, he earned his PhD from Aligarh Muslim University, and in 1960, he earned another PhD, this time from the University of London. He lived in Third Cross, Seventh Main, Saraswatipuram, in the heart of the metropolis.
A founding president of the South India History Congress in 1985, he also presided over the 47th session of the Indian History Congress as its general president in 1986.
Some of his best works
History: Its Theory and Method, Macmillan, New Delhi,
History of the Western Gangas (Comprehensive History of Karnataka, Volume 1), 1976, University of Mysore, Mysore.
‘Goa wins freedom: Reflections and Reminiscences, 1986, Goa University.
Tipu Sultan, A great martyr’, edited by B.Sheikh Ali, 1992, I.C.H.R.
Tipu Sultan, B. Sheikh Ali, National Book Trust, New Delhi
‘British relations with Hyder Ali’, (1760-1782), 1963, Rao and Raghavan
‘A great teacher, 1997, Prasaranga, University of Mysore
‘Islam, a cultural orientation’, 1981, Macmillan, Delhi.
‘Essays on Indian history and culture: felicitation volume in honour of Professor
B.Sheikh Ali, Ed. by H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy, 1990, Mittal Publications.
Before his burial, Pro. Ali’s remains lay in state at the Muslim hostel in the city’s Saraswathipuram neighbourhood, where mourners paid their condolences. He served as the hostel’s president for a long period, a post he eventually gave up. Mysore University’s Vice Chancellor, Hemant Kumar, and other distinguished guests paid their tributes, as did both current and former members of the university’s faculty. Tanveer Sait, who also served as a minister in the Union cabinet, and Rehman Khan were also in attendance.
He was laid to rest in the Muslim section of the cemetery after evening funeral prayers were held at the Mosque on the hostel grounds. With a son and a daughter, Pro. Ali is the principal breadwinner in the family. Tragically, it was learned that his wife, son, and daughter had all died.
Before beginning his teaching career, Professor Ali earned a doctorate from the University of Mysore. Years before becoming the first Vice Chancellor of Mangalore University, he taught and headed the History Department at the University of Mysore. In addition, he also taught at a college.
