Muhammad Taqi Usmani

Born in 1943, Muhammad Taqi Usmani is a Hanafi Islamic Scholar. In 1958, he passed the Fazil-e-Arabi (Arabic language examination) with distinction, administered by the Punjab Board. In 1959, he graduated from the Darul Uloom Karachi and specialised in fiqh under the guidance of his father, Mufti Muhammad Shafi. He received his Takhassus degree (equivalent to a PhD) in fiqh and ifta from Darul Uloom Karachi in 1961, earning the title of Mufti.

He graduated from the University of Karachi with a Bachelor of Arts in 1964. He then received a Bachelor of Law with distinction from the University of Karachi in 1967. He received a Master of Arts in Arabic literature, with distinction, from the University of Punjab in 1970.

Taqi Usmani received ijaza to teach hadith from Islamic scholars including Muhammad Shafi, Idris Kandhalvi, Muhammad Tayyib, Saleemullah Khan, Rashid Ahmad Ludhianvi, Sahban Mahmud, Zafar Ahmad Usmani, Muhammad Zakariya Kandhalvi, Hasan al-Mahshat, and others.

Mufti Taqi Usmani pioneered the concept of Islamic banking in Pakistan when he established the Meezan Bank. He has authored a number of books in Arabic, Urdu, and English on Islamic topics in addition to a large number of articles on Islamic banking and finance published in a number of journals and magazines.

In March 2004, United Arab Emirates Vice President and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum presented an award to Taqi Usmani in recognition of his lifetime service and achievement in Islamic finance during the annual International Islamic Finance Forum (IIFF) in Dubai.

In accordance with the tradition of the scholars of Deoband and recognising the importance of tasawwuf, Taqi Usmani's bay'ah was accepted by Abdul Hayy Arifi and Maseehullah Khan. He is a mentor to numerous spiritual aspirants all over the world and delivers weekly lectures on self-improvement at Darul Uloom Karachi on Sundays between Asr Salaah and Maghrib Salaah.

Currently he teaches Sahih al-Bukhari, fiqh, and Islamic economics at Darul Uloom Karachi and is known for his Islahi Khutbat. He was a key member of a team of scholars which helped declare Ahmadis (Qadianis), as non-Muslims by Pakistan's National Assembly during the era of former Pakistani president, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, in the 1970s.

During the presidency of General Zia ul Haq, He served as a judge on the Federal Shariat Court of Pakistan from 1981 to 1982 and the Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan between 1982 and 2002. He was instrumental in drafting laws pertaining to Hudood, Qisas, and Dayiat. He strongly opposed the Women's Protection Bill. According to him, it was designed to distract attention from issues such as flaws in the law enforcement system.

He is the brother of Islamic scholars Muhammad Rafi Usmani, Muhammad Wali Razi, and Muhammad Razi Usmani, as well as of the Urdu poet Muhammad Zaki Kaifi.