Islamic scholar outraged over cancellation of 'Progressive Islam' presentation

PROGRESSIVE Islamic scholar and imam Dr Taj Hargey said he had been left “livid” after his presentation on “Progressive Islam — The Future of the Faith — What is the Best Pathway for Muslims Today?”, which was scheduled to take place yesterday (Tuesday) at Sastri College, had been cancelled.

- NADIA KHAN

Hargey, who is the president of the Open Mosque in Cape Town and director of the Oxford Institute for British Islam, said he believed it was a violation of his Constitutional right to freedom of expression.

He said he had previously spoken at the college, which is his alma mater, and shared a relationship with Professor Jairam Reddy, the chairperson of the Sastri College Alumni Association, for many decades.

Hargey, who was born in South Africa, and now resides in the UK, said about two months ago while planning for his trip to Durban where he would be attending a reunion with his friends that he had matriculated with from the college, he approached Reddy with the idea to have the presentation.

“Professor Reddy seemed very happy for me to do it and went on to propose the idea to the association, who initially approved.

“We started doing some publicity and even made the notices about the presentation which include all of the details.

“However, about two weeks back all hell broke loose.

“The alumni association called a special meeting, where they said they were worried about ‘what would the Muslim parents think about having a progressive Muslim scholar speak at the school’ .