Kashmiri doc who topped IAS to be honoured today

Dr Shah Faisal

Mateen Hafeez | TNN

Mumbai: The Federation of Minorities, an NGO, will felicitate Dr Shah Faisal, who topped the civil services exam this year, at Anjuman-i-Islam, near CST, on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old doctor is the first Kashmiri to top this examination.

Dr Azimuddin, coordinator for the Federation of Minorities, said that Faisal was the fourth from the minority community to top the exam and it was an honour for his family as well as the country.

“We will felicitate him and that will inspire students from the community. Civil services aspirants have also been called. They will be able to interact with Faisal and ask him about the preparation for the exams. Faisal will also explain his method of study,’’ Azimuddin added.
State directorgeneral of police D Sivanandhan and city police commissioner Sanjeev Dayal will also attend the function as guests.

Faisal’s father was shot down in 2002 just three days prior to his pre-medical exams because he refused shelter to militants. He has never been to any coaching classes and has studied on his own.

Describing himself as a victim of conflict, Faisal said, “I have watched the bloodshed in Jammu and Kashmir very closely. I was devastated when my father, Ghulam Rasool Shah, was gunned down. It is him that I miss the most today. He used to dote on me and taught me English and Maths when I studied in school.’’

Faisal, who did his MBBS from Srinagar’s Sher-i-Kashmir Medical College, said he was confident of qualifying but never imagined he would end up at the top of the heap.

mateen.hafeez@timesgroup.com

The Times of India, June 15, 2010

‘If you fail, the world doesn’t end’

MAKING HIS CASE: R Javanjal took 18 tries to pass his law exams

Mateen Hafeez | TNN

Mumbai: “Nothing is more precious than your life. If you fail in one exam or do not score up to the mark, the world does not end there,’’ says 50-year-old advocate Rajendra Javanjal. He should know. It took him 18 attempts and nine years to pass his three-year LLB course. Today, Javanjal is credited with getting over 100 acquittals in court.

A day after TOI reported about Prakash Karekar, a railway peon who passed the SSC in his 44th attempt, Javanjal’s story has come to light. Javanjal’s wife, a graudate who holds a diploma in taxation law, supported him. “She would even prepare notes for me. My mother, Suman, was my biggest strength,’’ says the advocate.

“Whenever I would check the result, I would have failed in some subject or the other. I did not lose courage and tried hard to achieve my goal. I wanted to become a lawyer and did not give up,’’ says Javanjal, who now argues cases of murder, attempt to murder, dacoity, extortion and so on.

Originally hailing from Sangli, Javanjal studied law at New Law College, Matunga. In his first exam in 1981, he failed in all subjects. In his next attempt, he passed only one subject, Mohammedan law, and in the next attempt he cleared crime law. “I completed my law course in nine years, appearing for exams 18 times. I also got support from my advocate friends, Sameer Tendulkar and Anup Mehta, who would encourage me a lot and sit with me while preparing for exams,’’ adds Javanjal.

Javanjal says, “You should try hard to achieve your goal. There is no short cut to getting success. I had to study nine years to become a lawyer.’’

Javanjal’s elder daughter passed her law degree course in the first attempt and secured a first class. His younger daughter is in the first year of junior college. “I don’t put pressure on my children over studies. However, I regularly interact with them about their exams and encourage them. In such times, when students are more prone to ending their lives, parents should not discuss their expectations in front of the children,’’ he added.

The Times of India, January 21, 2010

Never-say-die peon passed SSC at 44th try

LESSONS IN LIFE: Karekar is now a peon

Mateen Hafeez | TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: A peon with the city railway commissionerate has a lesson or two for those Mumbaikars for whom one failure is enough to push them over the brink. Prakash Karekar, who is 50 years old and has completed 29 years of life as a peon, has passed his Class 10 examination in—believe it or not—his 44th attempt, and knows much more about failure, he says, than any other Mumbaikar.

“Look at me. The first time I appeared for the examination was in 1977 and I finally passed it in 2003,’’ Karekar told TOI on Tuesday. The eternal optimist, who now has his sights set on a promotion and a new life as a clerk, could serve as a role model for suicidal youngsters whose ranks are growing alarmingly. In the last three months, over a hundred students have committed suicide across Maharashtra, prompting much soul-searching among worried parents, academics, psychiatrists and even the state government. The Maharashtra police has already formed a 15-member team to probe the reasons for the spurt in suicides and suggest preventive measures.

KEEPING HIS SPIRITS UP ‘Mother encouraged me all she could’
Mumbai: Prakash Karekar, currently working with the city railway commissionerate for a monthly salary of Rs 14,000, said he had a simple formula that helped him pull through all the years of ignominy. “I was never worried and never felt insulted despite failing the exam without fail. I only knew that I had to fight again and again till I succeeded,’’ he said. “I got a job as a peon on the basis of my Class 9 marksheet. But I wanted to become a clerk and knew that somehow I had to do my Class 10 and so did not give up.’’

The peon’s journey to an SSC certificate is illuminating. He failed in all six subjects in 1977. The first subject he passed was Marathi, after which he gradually conquered Hindi, science and English. Mathematics proved the toughest nut to crack. “But I never lost hope,’’ he said.

However, Karekar admitted that he bore a heavy load through all the years of failure. “Even my mother was fed up with my continuous failures but at least she would not ridicule me. On the contrary, she did all she could to encourage me,’’ he said, adding that other parents should follow his mother’s example and never put pressure on their children.

“People should think of the anguish of their loved ones, who they will be leaving behind before they even think of suicide,’’ he concludes. “Anyway, we have no right to kill ourselves. Our life is a gift from God, and only He can take it away.’’
mateen.hafeez@timesgroup.com

The Times of India, January 20, 2010

Brilliant teen falls off train, loses both legs

INCONSOLABLE: Raushan Jawwad had scored 92.15% in her SSC exam

Mateen Hafeez I TNN
Mumbai: The city’s cattle class train commute has put a big question mark over the future of a brilliant sixteenyear-old girl. Raushan Jawwad, who scored over 92% in her class X examination a few months ago, lost both her legs after being pushed out of a crowded local train near Andheri on Tuesday. Raushan, who was returning to her Jogeshwari home after writing her college exam papers, had her lower limbs severed at the ankle and the thigh when she was trapped under the wheels of the same train.

“Allah meri dua kyon nahi sunte? Dard kam nahi ho raha hai (Why doesn’t God ease my pain?),’’ has been her inconsolable refrain since she regained consciousness in the Millat Nursing Home in Jogeshwari late on Tuesday. While she is still unable to speak coherently, her elder brother Abu Talib (18) told TOI that the loss of her legs has left Raushan devastated. “Her two mangled limbs have been amputated. What should we do to stop her from crying?’’ he asked.

Raushan is studying in class XI (science faculty) at Anjuman-e-Islam’s Dr Ishaq Jamkhanawala college in Bandra. She is the third among four siblings. Her father, Jawwad Ahmed, sells vegetables near Ismail Yusuf college.

Ansary Khatoon, who has been glued to her daughter’s bedside, said, “Her exams began on Monday. She left home at around 6.30 am on Tuesday and after finishing her second paper, took a train to come home. When she neared the door at Andheri station, she could not control her balance when the other women commuters started jostling. She fell onto the tracks and her legs came under the moving train.’’

Hearing Raushan’s screams, some commuters pulled the chain and the train was stopped.

TRAIN TRAGEDY Aged man helped girl while crowd looked on
Mumbai: Raushan Jawwad, a bright 16-year-old girl who lost both her legs after being pushed off a local train near Andheri on Tuesday, reportedly got no help from the public initially. “My daughter told me that a crowd quickly gathered around her but was content to merely look on. An elderly man came forward and offered water to my bleeding daughter and even informed the police. May Allah bless him,’’ said her mother Khatoon. She added that despite her obvious trauma, Raushan called up her brother-in-law and asked him to rush to the spot along with her mother. “She then fell unconscious,’’ said Khatoon. Raushan was initially rushed to Cooper Hospital and then shifted to Millat Nursing Home.

Family members said that Raushan has been a brilliant student throughout her school life and is very determined in her studies. “An NGO awarded her a laptop after she scored 92.15% in her SSC exam this year. Raushan wants to become a doctor and would study almost 10-12 hours a day. We are very poor... The accident has changed our lives and we don’t know what will happen now,’’ said Raushan’s brother Abu Talib, a school dropout who works as a salesman in a mall on a monthly salary of Rs 4,500.

The family is finding it difficult even to bear Raushan’s medical expenses. Teachers from Anjumane-Islam and the Farooque high school for girls, from where Raushan completed her schooling, have come forward to help her. A donor has offered to bear all the expenses and even promised to help her get fitted with artificial legs.

The Times of India, October 17, 2008

City Muslim girl takes Urdu route to IAS

THE LAST LAUGH: TOI caught up with Sarah at Burhani College

HARD WORK PAYS

Mateen Hafeez I TNN
Mumbai: Sarah Rizvi has done her bit to issue a blow to the stereotype of the Muslim woman, moderately educated and socially subjugated, ensconced in hijab. She has cleared the IAS exam, ranking 86th among 734 successful candidates. More remarkably perhaps, she has achieved the feat with Urdu literature as one of her optional subjects.

“Urdu is my mothertongue. I learnt Urdu and Persian from my late grandfather, Khalid Hussain Khan, who was a lawyer in Uttar Pradesh. I have read Urdu poems and novels since childhood. My Urdu writing speed was bad but I wrote a page a day and that improved my pace of writing,’’ Sarah said. Mohammed Iqbal was, for her, the most difficult poet to understand. “But his shayeri is fabulous,’’ she said of the Kashmiri poet who wrote Sare Jahan se achchha, Hindustan hamara.

After finishing BCom from MMK College in 2003, Sarah attended a lecture on competitive exams by K M Arif, educationist and chairman of Alliance Foundation. That inspired her to go for the IAS. “I tried twice but could not clear even the preliminary stage. This was my third attempt and, masha Allah, I passed,’’ the 25-year-old said, adding that her success was the outcome of 10-12 hours of study a day.

While doing her BCom, Sarah also completed her foundation course in chartered accountancy. “I wanted to become a CA but Dr Arif suggested I study for the IAS exam instead. I was clueless about the exam procedure and the requisite study material but my family supported me,’’ she said. Sarah was also awarded a scholarship by MESCO, an NGO.

Sarah is now posted as section officer in the Haryana Accountant-General’s office.
Sarah’s father, Afzal Ahmed, a science graduate, and mother Nigar, an arts graduate from Aligarh Muslim University, run a small garments business. Her elder brother, Wasif, a civil engineer, is working for a company in Dubai and Sarah’s twin sister, Sameera, a graduate in computer applications, from National College, is married and lives in Bahrain. “I feel more Mulims, especially women, should go for the competitive exams. Many women don’t even know what these exams are about but awareness is spreading,’’ Sarah said.

“This subject gives us an inside knowledge of government administration. And the topics are similar to the business administration course matter I read in college,” Sarah said, explaining why she chose public administration over accountancy as one of the optionals.

Sarah did her schooling from Canossa Convent School and St. Louis Convent High School in Andheri. She later joined CWC College for Commerce and Economics and eventually graduated from MMK College with 75.7 per cent marks.
mateen.hafeez@timesgroup.co

The Times of India, July 8, 2008

Madrasa student cracks UPSC

Maulana Waseem is a madrassa product who cracked civil services in 2008

Mateen Hafeez I TNN
Mumbai: At a time when eyebrows are being raised on the kind of education being imparted in madrasas across the country, a maulana from the Darul-Uloom-Deoband in Uttar Pradesh has passed the country’s most elite examination, the Civil Services exam, in his fourth attempt. Moreover, for his interview, the maulana took training from the RSS-run institute Samkalp at Paharganj in New Delhi.

Maulana Waseem-ur-Rehman, 31, is the first madrasa product who has cleared the civil services exams in the country. Brother of a truck driver, Rehman comes from a poor family in Siddharth Nagar, Basti, UP. He stood 404th among the 734 successful candidates. Rehman, who took history and Persian as hisoptional subjects, wrote his answer paper in Urdu.

Speaking to TOI, Rehman said that he worked hard for four years to crack the exam. “In my three earlier attempts, I failed in the prelim exams. This time, it being my last chance, I worked harder and made it a point to pass the exams. By the grace of Allah I am among the successful candidates,’’ he said.

Rehman completed his five-year school education from a madrasa, Ahyaul Uloom, before joining the Darul-Uloom-Deoband, the most reputed Islamic institution in the country. He completed the three-year course in Islamic studies, Hadith (sayings of the Prophet), the Quran and Shariat laws from Deoband. “Our Deoband certificate is equivalent to graduation and on the basis of that I took admission in the Bachelor in Unani Medicine and Surgery course in Aligarh. Meanwhile, I realised that students from madrasas hardly think about joining the civil services and becoming part of the system. So I discussed this with my friends and teachers and started collecing books,’’ he said.

‘It was a great time working with Samkalp’
Mumbai: Maulana Waseem-ur-Rehman, who cleared the Civil Service Examination in fourth attempt, is the first madrasa product to pass the country’s most elite exam.

After completing his BUMS, he took admission in Master of Surgery, MD, and also passed this.

Initially, he even did not know that there was a proper syllabus for this exam. “I had to collect the books and notes from several places and would study at night and early in the morning since during the day time I would attend my college for MD course,’’ Rehman said. While his eldest brother does odd jobs, the second is a truck driver and the youngest is doing his MA in Islamic Studies at Aligarh.

Was studying for the Civil Service Exam difficult, since he came from a different academic background? “Yes, but madrasa education has given me the power to think and I have a good knowledge of philosophy as it was explained properly in the madrasa. I worked hard and the rest was in the hands of Allah,’’ said Rehman. Those on the interview panel for the exam asked Rehman to explain why the ratio of males to females is more equal for Muslims than for other communities. “I answered everything in the light of Islam and they were convinced by my replies,’’ he added.

Talking about his experience at the RSSrun Samkalp, Rehman said, “It was a great time. They even informed me that I was selected for the coaching class and called me up regularly until I joined them. I did not feel any biased attitude over there. They are doing a good job,’’ he said. Of 825 IAS aspirants trained by Samkalp, 295 have passed the exam this year.
mateen.hafeez@timesgroup.com

The Times of India,

Malegaon youth all set to join IAS

Mohammed Qaisar is the first IAS officer from Malegaon

Times News Network
Mumbai: Malegaon may be synonymous with communal riots and the clutter of powerlooms. But Mohammed Qaisar has sought to give the Muslim-dominated township, situated about 300 km away from Mumbai, an all new identity.

Born and brought up in Malegaon, Qaisar—a son of a loom labourer—has cleared the prestigious Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exams, ranking 32nd among the 472 candidates from India. His ranking is bound to secure him a place in the coveted Indian Administrative Services (IAS).

What makes the 29-year-old’s achievement a truly commendable feat is the fact that he achieved success without any professional guidance, the comforts of a spacious study room or for that matter a wellequipped referral system or access to a library.

The absence of life’s luxuries is so evident in Qaisar’s dingy MHB colony flat in Malegaon where he stays along with 10 members from his family. It was his raw determination to prevail over circumstances which saw him achieve the near-impossible.
“It was my dream to clear the UPSC exams and I was determined to achieve it no matter what. I had cleared the written tests thrice but my performance in the personality tests was not up to the mark. This time, however, I wasprepared and corrected all my shortcomings. My first choice will be the IAS,’’ an overjoyed Qaisar told TOI over the phone on Tuesday.
Qaisar, fourth among 11 siblings, opted for Urdu literature, history and physics in the main exams. Qaisar’s eldest brother is a lecturer with Bandra Junior College.

He did his schooling from Shaikh Usman Urdu High School and Malegaon High School and Junior College and completed his graduation from MSG College. “I could not get admission in engineering and, therefore, I studied B Sc in Malegaon but continued studying for the civil services examinations,’’ he said.

“It is a dream that has come true. I have studied hard for five years and, with the grace of Allah, I have finally made it,’’ Qaisar added.

“My parents were a great support during my difficult days. I would study 14-16 hours a day and my father would bring all the necessary notes for me. My family stood with me even after I failed in the earlier attempts,’’ Qaisar said.

The textile town of Malegaon is known to be “riot-prone’’ and hit the headlines last September when four bombs exploded near mosques, killing 38 people and injured 297 others.

The Times of India, May 16, 2007