From Khanqah to Battlefield: How Sufi Muslims Fought for India’s Freedom with Faith and Fearlessness

By Syed Amjad Hussain, New Age Islam 14 August 2025 This article honours Sufi saints whose faith-fuelled resistance united communities, challenged British rule, and safeguarded India’s spiritual heritage—reminding us that freedom was both a moral and political triumph. Main points: 1. Sufi saints combined faith with activism, using sermons, fatwas, and moral authority to inspire rebellion against British rule. 2. Leaders like Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi, Sadruddin Azurda, and Ahmadullah Shah united communities across religious lines for the cause of freedom. 3. The Martyrdom of Syed Kifayat Ali Kafi, his fearless defiance and sacrifice became a symbol of moral courage. 4. Maulvi Allauddin’s Deccan revolt and other local movements challenged colonial dominance. 5. Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi safeguarded India’s spiritual heritage while opposing colonial interference. ----- Introduction In the chronicles of India’s freedom struggle, names of political leaders, armed revolutionaries, and mass movements often come to mind. But there was another kind of battlefield—quiet, spiritual, yet deeply potent—fought in mosques, madrasas, Sufi Khanqahs, and dusty village squares. Here, saints and scholars stood alongside rebels, challenging the Empire not only with swords, but with words, moral authority, writings, fatwas and unwavering conviction. These were the defenders of Hindustan, Sufis within the Chishti, Qadri, Madari, Naqshbandi and other Sufi Silsilas who believed that to love God meant to stand against oppression, and to serve humanity. They did not simply bless warriors from afar, they became warriors themselves, wielding fatwas, poetry, sermons, and, when needed, taking up arms. Their story reminds us that the fight for freedom was not only fought on the battlefield, but in the human soul. Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi: The Intellectual Torchbearer of Revolt Hazrat Allama Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi (1796–1861) was a towering figure in Islamic scholarship, he was renowned for his brilliance in theology, philosophy, and poetry. But as the British tightened their grip, his pen became a weapon. In 1857, during the First War of Independence, Khairabadi issued a historic fatwa declaring jihad, a sacred obligation to oppose foreign domination. His was not the rhetoric of a rabble-rouser but the reasoned verdict of a jurist aware of every word's weight. He convened fellow scholars, addressed the faithful, and reached out to Hindu leaders in Delhi and Awadh—expressing unity in struggle. Arrested and exiled to the dreaded Cellular Jail in the Andamans, he passed away in captivity, his grave a silent testament to intellectual defiance against injustice. Sadruddin Khan Azurda Dehlawi: Delhi’s Grand Mufti Who Defied an Empire Hazrat Shah Muhammad Sadruddin Khan ‘Azurda Dehlawi’ (1804–1868), the Grand Mufti of Delhi, commanded unparalleled respect across India. When the 1857 revolt erupted, he made a choice that would seal his fate. Among 29 Ulama-e-Ahl-e-Sunnat , he signed a collective fatwa declaring the British regime illegitimate and resistance lawful, a document that spread from city to countryside, stirring even those who had never seen a battlefield but responded to a moral call. Azurda’s fight was one of conscience. Even after Delhi fell and the British unleashed merciless reprisals, he never wavered. Until his final breath, under constant surveillance, his spirit remained unbroken. Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah: The Roaring Voice of Awadh In Awadh’s bustling lanes and sleepy hamlets, the memory of Hazrat Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah (1787–1858) still stirs passions. Known as Danka Shah for his ever-present drum, he was a preacher who could turn a Friday sermon into a clarion call for rebellion. Working closely with Khairabadi, Ahmadullah Shah issued joint decrees infusing faith with freedom. His most ingenious stratagem? The Chapati Movement, a mysterious chain of chapatis passed from village to village as coded notices to revolt. The British never deciphered its meaning, but it heightened the tension in the run-up to the uprising. Betrayed in 1858, he was martyred—his blood mingling with the soil he sought to liberate. Maulvi Allauddin: The Deccan’s Flame of Resistance While northern India burned in revolt, the Deccan had its own torchbearer in Maulvi Allauddin Hyder. On 17 July 1857, he led a daring attack on the British Residency in Hyderabad—a strike that shook colonial confidence. The operation failed, and Allauddin was captured and deported to the Andaman Islands. There, in the hellish confines of the Cellular Jail, he succumbed to illness and neglect. His death was quiet, but his message roared across generations: the British Empire was not invincible. Maulana Syed Kifayat Ali Kafi Moradabadi: The Poet-Saint Martyr of Moradabad Born into a respected Saadaat family in Bijnor, Maulana Syed Kifayat Ali Kafi Moradabadi was a luminous scholar, a Sufi, poet, physician and freedom fighter who chose sacrifice over comfort. Educated in Moradabad, Bareilly, and Badaun, he mastered religious studies, traditional medicine, and poetry under scholars like Sheikh Abu Saeed Rampuri and poet Zaki Moradabadi. When the First War of Independence swept the land, Kafi’s conscience would not allow him to stay silent. He issued a bold fatwa of jihad against British rule—posting it upon the walls of the Jama Masjid in Moradabad, summoning Muslims to rise against oppression. He then joined General Bakht Khan Rohilla’s forces, fighting fiercely from Delhi to Bareilly and Allahabad. After liberating Moradabad briefly, he helped establish a local government under Nawab Majeeduddin Khan and was appointed Sadar-e-Shariat, overseeing judicial matters under Islamic law. But betrayal followed. Informers turned against him, and amid British reprisals, Kafi was captured and brutally tortured. Undeterred, he refused to renounce his faith or homeland. On 6 May 1858, after a swift trial, he was hanged at the jail gate in Moradabad, facing death with extraordinary composure. As he walked to the gallows, he continued reciting beautiful verses in praise of the Prophet Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa Sallallahu Ta'aala Alayhi Wassallam, expressing the timelessness of the faith even as kings and kingships would perish. His martyrdom remains a poignant reminder of the forgotten heroes whose sacrifices laid the emotional bedrock of India’s freedom. Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi: The Spiritual Guardian Against Colonial Intrusion Though born in 1856, Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi (1856–1921) grew up in the shadow of the 1857 rebellion. His father, Hazrat Maulana Naqi Ali Khan, had supported Delhi’s anti-British fatwas, and the family carried this legacy with pride. As leader of the Sunni Barelvi movement, Aala Hazrat’s influence stretched far beyond Bareilly. He issued fatwas warning against cultural and religious compromise under colonial rule, encouraged economic self-reliance, and promoted unity among Muslims. His opposition to the British was so pronounced that colonial authorities reportedly placed a ₹500 bounty on his head, a sum that, at the time, could buy dozens of acres of fertile land. But Aala Hazrat’s resistance was not merely political—it was civilisational. He authored over a thousand works defending Islamic tradition, promoting scientific learning, and uplifting moral standards. His shrine today draws millions during Urs-e-Razvi, where the call for education, unity, and justice continues to echo. Why the Sufi Role Matters Today These Sufi saints did more than lead revolts—they gave the freedom struggle its soul. Their vision of liberation went beyond the mere removal of foreign rulers; it was a fight for moral principles, cultural heritage, and social justice. In their khanqahs and mosques, they nurtured an inclusive patriotism that transcended religion, bringing Hindus and Muslims together under a shared banner of dignity and defiance. Hazrat Allama Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi and Hazrat Ahmadullah Shah openly worked with leaders of other faiths, proving that India’s freedom was a sacred trust held in common. Their words, be they in poetry, fatwas, or sermons, reached far into the countryside, awakening communities untouched by formal politics. Even when faced with exile, imprisonment, or the hangman’s noose, they safeguarded India’s spiritual identity, ensuring that independence was not only a political achievement, but a moral and cultural triumph. In their lives, patriotism was not born from expediency but from principle—unyielding in the face of tyranny and inseparable from the defence of faith and freedom. A Forgotten Chapter Worth Remembering Today, as India celebrates its freedom, the memory of these saintly rebels should not be confined to footnotes in history books. Their courage was not forged in military academies but in prayer halls, libraries, and dusty courtyards where faith met fearlessness. They remind us that patriotism is not the monopoly of any one ideology or community—it is the collective heartbeat of a people unwilling to bow before injustice. In remembering Hazrat Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi, Hazrat Sadruddin Azurda Dehlavi, Hazrat Ahmadullah Shah, Maulvi Alauddin, Hazrat Syed Kifayat Ali Kafi, and Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi, we remember that India’s independence was not merely a political victory—it was a moral triumph shaped by the hands of saints. References: Asir Adrawi (April 2016). “Mawlāna Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi". Tazkirah Mashāhīr-e-Hind: Karwān-e-Rafta” Darul Moallifeen Abdur Rahman Parwaz Islahi (1977) “Mufti Sadruddin Aazurda: Hayat, Shakhsiyat, Ilmi Aur Adabi Karname” Maktaba Jamia Limited, New Delhi Rashmi Kumari (2016) “Maulavi Ahmad Ullah Shah And Great Revolt Of 1857” National Book Trust, India “Maulvi Alauddin: The Other Hero” The Times of India (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Maulvi-Alauddin-the-other-hero/articleshow/54273621.cms) Mohammad Aamil (29 August 2024) “Urs-e-Razvi: Aala Hazrat Ki Gardan Par Angrezon Ne Rakha Tha 500 Rupay Ka Inaam.. Yeh Thi Wajah” TV9 Hindi (https://www.tv9hindi.com/state/uttar-pradesh/bareilly-british-had-placed-bounty-of-rs-500-on-ala-hazrat-neck-who-imam-ahmed-raza-khan-barelvi-stwma-2777213.html) https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/syed-amjad-hussain-new-age-islam/revolutionary-legacy-heroic-martyrdom-maulana-kifayat-ali-kafi-moradabadi/d/132898 ------ Syed Amjad Hussain is an author and Independent research scholar on Sufism and Islam. He is the author of 'Bihar Aur Sufivad', a research book based on the history of Sufism in Bihar. URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-society/khanqah-battlefield-sufi-muslims-india-freedom/d/136493 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism