Colombo: Former Ameer ofSri Lanka Jamaat-e-Islami, Sheikh Ibrahim Hasan Lebbe, died on March 30, 2024, in Colombo at the age of 87. A large number of people from different parts of Sri Lanka attended his funeral prayers.
Born in Awyanota in 1937, Sheikh Ibrahim received his early education from the village school. In 1947, he joined Ghafooria Arabic College, where he studied for 9 years and later became a lecturer there. While studying in Ghafooria, he became associated with Sri Lanka Jamaat-e-Islami (SLJI).
He took up the profession of teaching under the Ministry of Education. In 1963 he was admitted to Teachers Training College and from 1965 he continued his services as a trained teacher. In 1967, he was admitted to the University of Peradeniya, where he met the Pakistani-born intellectual Professor S.A Imam and studied Arabic under Imam’s supervision and secured first position.
An interesting episode took place after his results were declared by the University of Peradeniya. Before Sheikh Ibrahim came to know his results, the head of the University’s Department of Oriental Languages, Professor W.S. Karunaratne, traveled 30 km in his car to meet his student Shaikh Ibrahim at Awyanota. The young Shaikh Ibrahim was surprised to see his HOD at the door of his house. The professor congratulated him and shook hands with him, saying that the university had released his results and Shaikh Ibrahim had broken the 20-year-old record of Prof Karunaratne by securing first-class honors in nine subjects in the examinations. The professor had traveled solely to congratulate him on this achievement.
Soon after his results, he was appointed lecturer in Arabic and Islamic Civilization at the University of Kelaniya and then at the University of Peradeniya. Sheikh Ibrahim joined SLJIin 1957 and was appointed its Secretary General in 1958 at the age of 21. Since then he held several important positions in the organization. In 1976, he was elected Ameer of SLJI. However, in 1977, he had to go to Saudi Arabia for his postgraduate studies. In 1982, he was re-elected as Ameer and held the position until 1994. During his tenure, SLJImade great progress in various fields.
After stepping down as Ameer, he held the post of Naib Ameer for a long time and devoted his time to establishing important educational institutions like Ayesha Siddiqa College of Higher Education and Tanveer Academy. He played an important role in translating Maulana Maududi’s famous Qur’anic commentary Tafheem al-Qur’an into Sinhalese, which took more than 10 years to complete. This commentary was published by SLJIin 12 volumes. In the release ceremony of this commentary, the then Prime Minister of the country DM Jayaratne was the special guest.
Sheikh Ibrahim also performed the duties of Editor-in-Chief of SLJI’s monthly magazine Al-Hasnat for many years. Sheikh Ibrahim was proficient in Arabic, English, Sinhalese, and Tamil languages. He was a talented orator and writer and his radio programs on the State Broadcasting Corporation’s Muslim Service were quite popular. He did post-graduate studies at Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, and during this time established close relations with many Islamic figures and scholars from around the world. He had the honor of meeting Maulana Maududi several times in Lahore.
He was one of the founding members of Al-Haiya Al-Khairiya Al-Islamiya Al-Alamiya and also worked as a student advisor in the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) scholarship program in Sri Lanka. He also held the position of Vice President of All Ceylon Jamiat Ulema, the umbrella body of Muslim scholars in the country.
Sheikh Ibrahim participated in the formulation of university and national educational curricula on Islam and Islamic civilization. He also served as the chief examiner of these subjects in the GCE-O and A-level examinations under the Ministry of Education. He maintained good relations with the Muslim political leaders of his time. Former Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament Muhammad Hanifa Muhammad and the country’s former Foreign Minister Shah Hameed looked up to him and called him directly for advice on various community issues.
He was a prominent figure in the field of Islamic education in Sri Lanka. He played a leadership role in establishing institutions such as MadampeIslahiyya Arabic College and BatalamIslahiya Ladies College. He was also a member of the initial curriculum committee of Jamia Nizamiya, a prominent Islamic educational institution in the country. In the absence of a research institute to study social problems, he established the Sarandib Institute for Research and Development and served as its head. Sheikh Ibrahim was very concerned about unity among Muslims. For the same purpose, he also led the formation of ‘Ittihad al-Muslimeen’, a patron organization of Muslim civil society organizations.
Despite his long association with SLJI, he never took any remuneration for his services. Rather, on retiring from the university, he donated his entire provident fund to the construction fund of the Jamaat. Sheikh Ibrahim was a respected figure among scholars, intellectuals, and common people alike. He was a progressive scholar who thought ahead. He planned the future of his community and his organization. The void created by his death will be difficult to fill.