Qidwai

"Kidwai" redirects here. For other uses, see Kidwai (disambiguation).

Qidwai/ Kidwai
Religions	Islam
Languages	Urdu and Hindi and Arabic and Persian
Populated states	Uttar Pradesh India and Sindh Pakistan Middle East region

The Qidwai or Kidwai (Urdu: قدوائی, Arabic: قدوائی) are a community of Muslim Shaikhs in South Asia. They are mostly settled in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India and Karachi, Pakistan.^[1][2]

They are also settled in the city of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, and also in areas of the Middle East specifically, Saudi Arabia, Palestine and Qatar.^[3]

The Qidwai, together with the Milki, Malik and Chaudhary form a community of substantial landowners.

History and origin

The Qidwa claim descent from Qazi Qidwa, a son of the Sultans of Rum. Qazi Qidwa fell out with his brother who was the then ruling Sultan, and migrated to India with his wife and son. There he became a close associate of the famous Sufi saint, Mu'in al-Din Chishti (1143-1236). The Sufi saint is said to have sent Qazi Qidwa to the Awadh region to spread Islam, where he is said to have won over fifty villages to Islam over some time. These fifty villages were later awarded to him, and the region became known as Qidwara.^[3]

Camp of Shuja-ud-Daula of Awadh

The Qidwai were recruited in the household cavalry of Shuja-ud-Daula, which was mainly composed of the Sheikhzadi.^[4][1]

These clans had not taken any profession other than a soldier or a civil officer.^[2]

Present circumstances

The abolishment of the zamindar system by the newly independent India in 1947 had a major impact on the Qidwai community. The larger estates were broken, and land given to the farmers who worked on their lands. This led to some emigration of the Qidwais to Pakistan.^[5]

The Qidwais are still found mainly in the districts of Lucknow.^[2]

Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award

The Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award was created in 1956 by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to recognize Indian researchers in the agricultural field. Awards are distributed every second year, and take the form of medals, citations, and cash prizes.^[6]

Notable people

• Rafi Ahmed Kidwai (18 February 1894 - 24 October 1954), Veteran Indian politician, Indian independence activist and the Minister of Communications in the first Cabinet of Independent India (First Nehru Ministry).
• Abdul Majid Daryabadi
• Shafey Kidwai
• Fuad Shahid Hussain Qidwai (1924-1969), Indian World War II pilot, later Pakistan Air Force pilot

See also

• Sayyid
• Siddiqui
• Shaikhs in South Asia

References

1. Amaresh Misra (1998). Lucknow, Fire of Grace:The Story of Its Revolution, Renaissance and the Aftermath (Qidwai clan). Harper Collins Publishers India. p. 28. ISBN 9788172232887.
2. Surya Narain Singh (2003). The Kingdom of Awadh - Its History, Polity and Administration. Mittal Publications via Google Books website. p. 9. ISBN 9788170999089.
3. Rathin Biswas (2020). Rafi Ahmed Kidwai: BRIDGING REGION and nation: a political biography. Notion Press, 2020. ISBN 9781648929915. Qidwai Mohalla. The long lineage of Qazi Qidwa sttled in and around the Barabanki District near Lucknow. Nearby Village of Masauli, Rudauli, Gadia, Mahmudabad, Daryabad and Baragaon became the main epicenter of the Kidwai clan.
4. Pradeep Barua (2005). The state at war in South Asia. University of Nebraska Press. p. 73. ISBN 9780803213449.
5. Caste and Social Stratification among Muslims (Manohar, 1978), edited by Imtiaz Ahmed, pp. 209-215.
6. "Merits & Awards of India". Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) website. Archived from the original on 3 June 2008. Retrieved 1 November 2024.