Ahmad Kutty (born 1946 in Valanchery, Kerala, India), is a North American Islamic scholar. He is currently senior resident Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto[1] and has taught at Emanuel College of the University of Toronto as an adjunct instructor.[2] He is the father of Faisal Kutty.
Early education and background
Kutty graduated in the traditional Islamic sciences and received the Ijazah (title) of al-Faqih fi al-ddeen (first rank) from Islamiya College Santapuram, a leading Islamic institution in south India.[3] He served as an editor for the Jamaat Kerala mouthpiece Probadhanam.[4] During his tenure he also translated Sayyid Qutb's Social Justice (al-adalatul ijtimaiyyah fi al-Islam) into Malayalam (first published in 1969). (Note: i.p.h publications no:74, Islamic Publishing House, Calicut, Kerala, India).[1]
Kutty earned a scholarship to study at the Islamic University of Madinah, Saudi Arabia, from where he obtained his Licentiate in Usul al-Ddeen (first rank passing at the top of his class in 1972).
In 1972, he arrived in Canada with a scholarship to pursue his M.A. in Islamic studies from the University of Toronto. He went on to further his doctoral studies at the McGill University Institute of Islamic Studies where he earned scholarships (from 1975 to 1980) to pursue his research under the supervision of Professor Charles Adams[5] and Prof. A. Üner Turgay.[6] The Institute, established in 1952 by Wilfred Cantwell Smith, is the first institute of Islamic studies in North America.
During a visit to India in 1976, an arrest warrant was issued for Shaikh Kutty under The Emergency (India) declared by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s administration mainly (for his translation work with Islamic Publishing House and Probodhanam Weekly, the mouthpiece of Kerala Jamaate). In India, "the Emergency" refers to a 21-month period in 1975–77 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi unilaterally had a state of emergency declared across the country. Officially issued by President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed under Article 352(1) of the Constitution for "internal disturbance", the Emergency was in effect from 25 June 1975 until its withdrawal on 21 March 1977.[7]
His son Faisal Kutty recounts as one of his earliest childhood memories as running from safe house to safe house, until the family was able to leave India.[7]
In 2003, Shaikh Kutty made international headlines when he and ImamAbdul Hamid were detained and held in a Fort Lauderdale jail after disembarking from their flight on 11 September.[8] The two were travelling to Florida to speak at an Islamic conference. He is a well-known scholar, preacher and speaker on Islam and Muslims. He was also one of the first and most vocal imams to condemn the terrorist attacks on the twin towers in the same day in a Friday Sermon at the Islamic Center of Toronto.
Furthermore, among the topics to be discussed at the conference in Orlando was the dangers of extremism and fanaticism. After returning to Canada, Shaikh Kutty asked:
But if the American immigration officials can go after me and Hamid who are well-known for preaching moderation, what happens to ordinary Muslims?[8]
Career
Kutty served as an Imam in various mosques and Islamic centers in Montreal during his McGill days. He then held the following positions:[1]
1973–1975: Assistant Director: Islamic Center of Toronto
1979–1982: Director/Imam: Islamic Center of Toronto
1984–1995: Director/Imam Islamic Foundation of Toronto
1996—Resident Scholar & Senior Lecturer, Islamic Institute of Toronto
