Muhammad Abdullah Ghazi

Muhammad Abdullah Ghazi (Urdu: محمد عبد اللہ غازی c. 1 June 1935 – 17 October 1998) was a Pakistani Deobandi Islamic scholar, theologian of the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence, and a political figure. He held several key positions, including the Chairman of Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, the first Imam and Khatib of Lal Masjid in Islamabad, the Chancellor of Jamia Faridia and Jamia Hafsa, the Patron-in-Chief of Wifaq Al Madaris Al Arabiyah and Jamia Mohammadia, member of both the Aalmi Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-e-Nubuwwat and Council of Islamic Ideology, the President of Markazi Jamiat Ahlus-Sunnat wal-Jama'ah and Idara Alia Tanzeem ul Madaris, member of 1981 Majlis-e-Shoora during the Presidency of Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq and as Federal Khatib under President Farooq Leghari in the 29th and 36th Cabinet of Pakistan.

Ghazi was an alumnus of Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia and had studied under various scholars including Allama Yusuf Banuri, Mufti Mehmood, and Mufti Muhammad Shafi. He later taught notable students such as Aurangzeb Farooqi, Manzoor Mengal, and Atta-ur-Rehman and was also considered a mentor to Fazal-ur-Rehman.

He was personally appointed by President Ayub Khan to serve as the first Imam and Khatib of Central Mosque Islamabad (Lal Masjid), the first mosque established in Pakistan's new capital, Islamabad.

Ghazi was a close associate of Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, a military dictator who became the sixth President of Pakistan, and served as one of his key advisors on religious affairs and was awarded the Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 1986. He played a significant role in the establishment of Pakistan's Zakat Councils and contributed to the drafting of the Zakat and Ushr Ordinance of 1980. Ghazi was also a key proponent of the proposed Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan in August 1998.

Ghazi played a significant role in establishing and supporting mosques and madrasas across the country.

In 1971, he founded Jamia Faridia in Islamabad, the first Islamic seminary to be established in Islamabad. He taught the Kutub al-Sitta including Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī at the madrasah, and was known by the title "Shaykh al-Hadith".

On 17 October 1998, Ghazi was assassinated by unknown assailants while approaching Lal Masjid after teaching a class at Jamia Faridia.