Introduction
Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, a globally revered Islamic scholar, jurist, and authority on Sharia, has profoundly influenced contemporary Muslim thought through his expertise in fiqh, hadith, and Islamic finance. Born on October 3, 1943, in Deoband, India, Mufti Taqi Usmani’s age of 82 as of November 2025 reflects a lifetime of scholarship that spans seven decades, marked by his migration to Pakistan at age five and subsequent rise as a leading Deobandi intellectual.
As a former judge on Pakistan’s Federal Shariat Court (1982–2002) and Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court (1982–2002), he has issued thousands of fatwas and authored over 143 books in Urdu, Arabic, and English, including seminal works on Islamic economics and jurisprudence.
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s Twitter account (@TaqiMufti), with over 5,500 followers, serves as a modern conduit for his guidance, where he shares concise fatwas on contemporary issues like digital banking and interfaith relations, blending traditional wisdom with accessible online engagement.
Early Life and Education
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s early life was steeped in religious scholarship, born into a family of renowned ulema in Deoband, the cradle of the Deobandi movement. At just four years old, following the 1948 partition of India, his family migrated to Karachi, Pakistan, where his father, Mufti Muhammad Shafi—the Grand Mufti of Darul Uloom Deoband and founder of Darul Uloom Karachi—continued his legacy.
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s education began at home under his father’s tutelage before formal enrollment at Darul Uloom Karachi in 1950. By 1958, he completed his ‘Fazil-e-Arabi’ with distinction, followed by his Alimiyyah degree in 1959 and Takhassus in fiqh and ifta in 1961, earning the title of Mufti. He further pursued secular studies, obtaining a BA in economics and politics from the University of Karachi in 1964, an LLB in 1967 (standing second in his batch), and an MA in Arabic from the University of Punjab in 1970.
This dual Islamic and secular education, under luminaries like Muhammad Idris Kandhlawi and Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Baz, equipped him with a holistic approach to jurisprudence, evident in his fatwas on modern challenges like cryptocurrency and bioethics, which he occasionally addresses via Twitter for global audiences.
Family Background
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s family is a lineage of Islamic scholarship, tracing back to the third Caliph, Uthman ibn Affan, and deeply rooted in the Deobandi tradition. As the fifth and youngest son of Mufti Muhammad Shafi (1897–1976), a pivotal figure in Pakistani religious education and Grand Mufti, he grew up in a household where Islamic discourse was daily fare.
His mother, though less documented, provided the nurturing environment that complemented his rigorous studies. Mufti Taqi Usmani has several siblings, including brothers who pursued religious vocations, but he maintains privacy around extended family to focus on scholarly work. Married with children, including sons who have followed in scholarly paths, his family life in Karachi remains shielded from public view, allowing him to prioritize global outreach.
This background of piety and intellectual rigor informs his moderate maslak—Hanafi in fiqh and Maturidi in aqeedah—as a Sunni Muslim, a stance he upholds in Twitter responses to queries on sectarian harmony and contemporary fiqh.
Professional Career
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s professional career as a scholar began in earnest at Darul Uloom Karachi, where he taught hadith, fiqh, and usul al-fiqh from 1961 onward, later serving as vice-president and Shaykh al-Hadith. Appointed a judge on the Federal Shariat Court in 1982, he contributed to over 1,000 rulings on Islamic law, including the Islamization of Pakistan’s legal system, before moving to the Supreme Court’s Shariat Appellate Bench until 2002.
As chairman of Wifaq ul Madaris Al-Arabia since 2021, he oversees Deobandi seminaries worldwide, ensuring standardized curricula. His expertise in Islamic finance has global reach; he chairs Shariah boards for over 20 institutions, including the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), and advises central banks on sukuk and riba-free banking.
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s Twitter (@TaqiMufti) extends this influence, where he posts brief fatwas on topics like halal investments and marital rights, amassing engagement from scholars and laypeople alike, with recent threads on Gaza aid and digital ethics garnering thousands of retweets.
Controversies
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s career has faced controversies, notably a 2019 assassination attempt in Karachi when gunmen fired on his convoy, killing two escorts but sparing him and his family—a miracle he attributes to divine protection. The incident, linked to extremists, drew global condemnation and heightened security.
In 2016, his fatwa on female education sparked debate, though he clarified it supported learning within Sharia bounds. His views on blasphemy laws and women’s rights have polarized opinions, with critics accusing him of conservatism, while supporters praise his balanced jurisprudence. On Twitter, these discussions often unfold in threads, where he responds to queries with nuanced citations from hadith, fostering dialogue amid tensions.
Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, has repeatedly found himself drawn into the fray of Pakistan’s volatile political arena, where his authoritative fatwas and public statements often intersect with contentious state matters, sparking debates that transcend religious boundaries.
Over the years, he has been pulled into discussions on constitutional reforms, such as his November 10, 2025, Twitter post vehemently opposing the 27th Amendment’s proposed lifetime legal immunity for the president, deeming it “un-Islamic” and a violation of judicial accountability principles enshrined in Sharia and the Constitution— a stance that ignited widespread online discourse, with #MuftiTaqiUsmani trending as supporters praised his courage while critics accused him of meddling in governance.
Earlier, in April 2025, Usmani co-signed a fatwa declaring military jihad against Israel “obligatory” for all Muslim governments, including Pakistan, in response to the Gaza conflict, a declaration that dragged him into geopolitical tensions when it was echoed by scholars like Muneeb ur Rahman and criticized by Egypt’s Grand Mufti as “irresponsible,” fueling Twitter storms under #FatwaOnIsrael where users debated its feasibility amid Pakistan’s economic constraints.
In July 2024, his call for complete economic boycotts of Israel and emphasis on peaceful protests amid the ongoing war drew him into domestic politics, with PML-N and PTI figures invoking his words to score points on foreign policy, leading to hashtags like #BoycottIsraelPK that amplified his voice but also exposed him to accusations of indirect political alignment.
Even in non-conflict times, Usmani’s 2019 opposition to lifetime immunity proposals echoed similar themes, positioning him as a moral arbiter whose interventions—whether on blasphemy laws or women’s rights—inevitably pull him into the crossfire of partisan divides, as seen in 2023 Twitter threads where his fatwa on female education was weaponized in gender debates, underscoring how his scholarly pronouncements continue to ripple through Pakistan’s polarized public sphere.
Achievements and Contributions
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s achievements include authoring over 143 books, such as Fiqh al-Buyu (on commerce) and Takmilah Fath al-Mulhim (hadith commentary), and translating Sahih al-Bukhari into Urdu. He received the Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 2019, Jordan’s Order of Independence in 2010, and the Islamic Development Bank Prize in 2014.
Ranked #1 in The Muslim 500 (2020), his net worth, estimated at PKR 50-100 million from lectures and finance advisory, supports modest living, with no public salary details. Contact via Twitter (@TaqiMufti) or Darul Uloom; no personal number or email.
Personal Life
Mufti Taqi Usmani resides in Karachi with his family, dedicating time to teaching and writing. As a Sunni with Hanafi-Maturidi maslak, his faith guides his global outreach.
Legacy
Mufti Taqi Usmani’s legacy as a Deobandi luminary endures through his fiqh and finance contributions. As of November 2025, his Twitter remains active, guiding millions.
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