Afghan Biographies

Gilani, Pir Sayed Ahmad Gailani dead


Name Gilani, Pir Sayed Ahmad Gailani dead
Ethnic backgr. Pashtun
Date of birth 1932
Function/Grade National Islamic Front of Afghanistan
History and Biodata

3. Biodata
gailani_pir_ahmedPir Sayed Ahmed Gailani Pir Sayyid Ahmad Gilani was born on May 1, 1932. Hazrat Naqib Sahib, father of Sayyid Ahmad Gailani Effendi, the present pir of the Qadiriya, established the family seat in Afghanistan on the outskirts of Jalalabad during the 1920s. Pir Ahmad Gailani is the leader of the mujahidin Mahaz-i Melli Islami party. The leadership of Qadiriya order derive from heredity rather than religious scholarship.The Qadiriya was founded in Baghdad, Iraq by Abdul-Qadir Gilani and can trace their lineage to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. His father, Sayyid Hazrat Gailani, was born in Baghdad before moving to Afghanistan in 1905 in order to establish the Qadiriyyah order in that country. Amir Habibullah Khan gave him land in Kabul and Eastern Nangarhar Province.

Pir Sayyed Ahmad Gilani was born in the Surkh-Rod District of Eastern Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan, where he remains a significant figure. He studied at the Abu Hanifa college in Kabul, before graduating at the Faculty of Theology of Kabul University in 1960. In 1952, he reinforced his family's close ties to the Afghan royal family by marrying Adela, a granddaughter of Amir Habibullah.

Prior to the war, Gailani invested more time in his business career than in the leadership of his Sufi tariqah, often travelling to France and England. Through his connection with the monarchy, he was able to obtain the Peugeot dealership in Kabul. Gailani is a cleric who left Afghanistan after the communist revolution 1979 to found the National Islamic Front in Peshawar. This group became a member of the alliance of seven that formed the Mujaheddin government of 1992-96.

Gailani's constituency was drawn from the following of the Qadiryyah, and his group functioned like a sufi order, greatly hampering its efficiency as a political and military organisation. The followers of the pir always expected to interact with him personally, which meant that the party functioned like a court, centered around Gailani and his children, rather than like a modern party. No decision was ever delegated. The quantity of weapons a NIFA mujaheddin commander could expect to receive depended mostly on his personal relation with the pir. Also the pir's tradition of generosity led to many abuses, with many party officials receiving essentially fictitious posts through personal contacts.

Gailani is still the spiritual leader of the Sufi Qadiryya order. He is a relatively moderate Pashtun leader and reports say he has urged the former king to broaden his political base. His vision even has room for moderate sections of the Taleban. Gailani is the head of Mahaz-i-Milli-Islami (National Islamic Front NIFA). He was a strong supporter of the former Afghan king Mohammad Zahir. In the October 2004 presidential elections, Gailani supported Hamid Karzai. He has declared his support for the US presence in Afghanistan, and also believes that gailani_pir_ahmad_sayyed"innocent" members of the Taliban should be allowed to participate in Afghan politics.

Mohammad Ismael Qasimyar the advisor on international affairs with the High Peace Council (HPC) has said that Pir Sayed Ahmad Gilani is likely to be appointed as head of the entity. The peace body is led by acting chief since assuming the office of foreign ministry by its former chief Salahudin Rabbani 2015.(20160208)
 

The recently appointed chairman of the High Peace Council (HPC), Pir Sayed Ahmad Gillani, appears have major differences with his senior staff, six of them have resigned as a result. According to leaked documents, Gillani has appointed 60 more guards for his house, adding a further financial burden of 18 million Afs on the government annually. This was one of the main reasons leading to the resignations of key managers of the HPC. Gillani was appointed as new chairman of the HPC four months ago. Since then, relations between him and the HPC secretariat have been strained over a number of issues.(20160705)

Pir Gailani has five children, two sons and three daughters: 1. Sayyid Hamid Gailani. Dep. Leader National Islamic Front of Afghanistan, Leader of the Pushtun Delegation to the UN Conference at Bonn 2002. 2. Sayyid Muhammad Gailani. 3. Fatima Begum [Mrs. Fatima Gailani]. 4. Maryam Gailani. 5. Zarin Gailani.

Pir Gilani's wife died in May 2012 suffering two years from a incurable disease.(20120616)

Gilani passed way as he was receiving treatment in the Afghan Intelligence, National Directorate of Security (NDS) hospital. Gilani was under treatment in Amanullah Khan hospital (NDS) in Kabul, following heart attack, a member of HPC said. (20170121)

He speaks fluent English, Dari and Pashtu.

Mahaz-e Melli-ye Islami-ye Afghanistan (National Islamic Front of Afghanistan)
Leader: Sayyad Ahmad Gailani Postal Address: Malalai Wat, Interior Ministry Road, Kabul, Afghanistan Telephone: 0700204265, 0700231345

Last Modified 2017-01-21
Established 2009-10-09