Leeds Makkah Mosque has stood by its lead imam, Qari Asim, after a group of imams called for him to be sacked over his controversial work with the UK government and Zionists.
In a statement published on its website, the mosque accused the signatories of betraying Islamic principles and putting the safety of Qari Asim and the masjid congregation at risk.
Last week, 29 Barelwi Sunni imams called on Leeds Makkah Mosque to sack Qari Asim and urged Muslims to dissociate themselves from him. They accused Qari Asim of betraying his own community for personal or political gain.
But in response, Leeds Makkah Masjid said it “was shocked and dismayed” that no attempt was made by the signatories to the letter to contact them prior to publicly issuing the letter.
The mosque also claimed that when it contacted a number of the signatories they said that they “had not actually consented to their names being added to such an inflammatory letter.”
As for Qari Asim, the mosque said that no evidence had been presented to support the claim that he “has consistently undermined the interests of the British Muslim community by forging close relationships with the UK government (across both major parties).”
The statement said: “Imam Qari Asim has diligently served the Makkah Masjid community for over 20 years, balancing the needs of the local community with his many national and international roles and duties. He has been a long-standing voice of reason in British civil society. Over the years, he has been supported by hundreds of Imams across the country to champion Muslim-related issues at a national level.
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“To the best of our knowledge, at no time has he held himself out as a representative of all British Muslims or ‘a national leader of British Muslims, particularly of the Sunni (Barelwi)community…’ as claimed in the letter, rather he speaks in the capacity of his various patronages or in an individual capacity. Any other voices from amongst the Sunni Barelwi community are free to present counter-narratives to those expressed by Imam Qari Asim should they disagree with any aspect of his public discourse.
“There are around 4 million Muslims in Britain, with a rich diversity of thought, and it is alarming when 29 (or whatever the actual number of signatories is) self-serving individuals claim to speak on behalf of all British Muslims and make the unsubstantiated claim that “the British Muslim community does not recognise him as their leader”.
The mosque also said that the letter posed risks to Makkah Mosque congregants because of its call for “all Muslim brothers and sisters to abstain from prayers led by Qari Asim and to consider any prayer led by him to be severely disliked.”
The mosque said this is “gravely concerning and incendiary,” and was made with “the intention of causing serious disquiet and fitna within the community served by Makkah Masjid.”
“We fear that such inflammatory statements have the potential to trigger considerable disharmony in the local community and beyond, and therefore to cause an unacceptable level of risk to the personal safety of Imam Qari Asim and the safety of the congregants of Makkah Mosque. We believe that the statements have been made in the letter without full consideration of the ramifications for the Imam, Management Committee, and community of Leeds Makkah Masjid.”
The letter by the Barelwi imams came after Qari Asim and other Muslims signed a Muslim-Jewish “reconciliation” agreement with Zionists to set out “a new framework for engagement” between Britain’s Muslims and Jews “built on mutual respect, dialogue, and practical collaboration.”
Simultaneously, Qari Asim is also fronting the new British Muslim Network – a government-friendly Muslim organisation with the remit of liaising with the authorities over Muslim issues.
