First Ijmah on Khilafat
First Ijmah on Khilafat and the Khalifa being Janasheen
Introduction
One of the first things the entire Ahmadi Community agreed upon unanimously was that Hazrat Hakeem ul Ummat Noor-ud-Deen (ra) was not only the Khalifa but the Janasheen (Successor) of Masih Maud(as) not the Anjuman. The testimonies of the future Lahoris are present in the newspapers.
The Decision of the Jama’at concerning the 1st Khalifa (ra)
The decision of the Jama’at at the time when Hazrat Hakeem ul Ummat Noor-ud-Deen (ra) was elected Khalifa was that all members of the Movement, old or new, should render their allegiance. This was expressly the point where a clear consensus of opinion in the Jama’at took place, so that we find Kh.Kamaluddin, Pleader, Secretary Anjuman Ahmadiyya,writing in the Badr,June,1908,under title”Announcement from the Anjuman Ahmadiyya”wherein there was first a description of how the body of the Promised Messiah was brought to Qadian from Lahore,followed by a declaration to the effect:
Announcement from the Anjuman Ahmadiyya
“Before the Janaza Prayer over the body of the Promised Messiah was offered,in accord with his last will and testament,and under the advice of Trustees of the Sadr Anjuman-e-Ahmadiyya, present in Qadian on the occasion,and the close relatives of the Promised Messiah,with permission from Hazrat Ummulmominin,the entire membership of the Movement present at the Centre,numbering nearly 1200, Hazrat Maulana Hakim Nuruddin was chosen successor {JANASHEEN] and Khalifa, accepted in that position by all present;and pledges of allegience and loyalty were tendered to him by all.Trustees of the Sadr Anjuman present on the occasion were the following:Maulana Hazrat Syed Mohammad Ahsan; Sahibzada Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad; Janab Nawab Mohammad Ali Khan Sahib;Sheikh Rahmatullah Sahib; Maulvi Mohammad Ali Sahib, Dr. Mirza Yaqub Beg Sahib;Dr. Syed Mohammad Hussain Sahib; Khalifa Rashiduddin Sahib;and my humble self-Kh.Kamaluddin.”
“Though the sad event came as a sudden and unexpected event,as there was not sufficient time for friends in other places to be informed,still from Ambala, Jallundhar, Kapurthala, Amritsar, Lahore, Gujranwala, Wazirabad, Jammu, Gujrat, Batal, .and Gurdaspur,Ahmadies converged to the Centre,so that the funeral prayer was shared in byalarge number,both in Lahore,when the journey back to Qadian started,and then at Qadian itself before the burial. Members of the Movement from places mentioned above, and other Ahmadies present,of which an approximate number has been given above,accepted Hakimul Ummat(Hazrat Maulvi Nuruddin)as Khalifatul Masih by common consent of all. This letter is being sent out now to inform all members of the Movement, and to request that immediately on reading this letter they should tender their allegience to Hakimul Ummat, Khalifatul Masih wal Mehdi, by coming to Qadian in person, for this purpose, or in writing, by mail.
Badr, June 2. 1908, Front Page – Announcement from Anjuman-e-Ahmadiyya
You have all the names of the members of the Anjuman in here testifying that the Janasheen (Successor) and Khalifa of Masih Maud(AS) is Maulana Noor-ud-Deen(RA).
Khalifatul Masih will have same authority for us as the wishes and orders of the Promised Messiah
Mufti Mohammad Sadiq, Editor of Badr, wrote:
“When Hazrat Ummulmoninin was asked, she replied there was no one more deserving to become the Successor[JANASHEEN] of the Promised Messiah than Hazrat Maulvi Nuruddin. Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad also agreed fully. So when the janaza was placed in the garden, and all the friends were present there, with the concurrence of them all, my humble self (Mohammad Sadiq, Editor of the Badr) stood up and read the following, as a request addressed to Hazrat Maulvi Sahib: ‘In compliance with instruction from the Promised Messiah, vide Al-Wasiyyat, we, the Ahmadies, whose signatures, appear below, sincerely agree that Hazrat Maulvi Nuruddin, the most learned and erudite among us, and the most pious, the most loyal and devoted follower of the Imam of the age, whose example has been approved and appreciated by the Promised Messiah himself – to which fact the following couplet of the Promised Messiah bears witness: ‘How happy it would have been, if everyone in the Ummat had been Nuruddin; and indeed it would have been quite possible if only everyone had been as firm in faith as he has been.’ It has been decided that all members of the Movement, old and new, should take bai’at at his hand as Khalifatul Masih, in which capacity his wishes and orders shall have the same authority for us as the wishes and orders of the Promised Messiah.”
Lahori Bidat:
We consider the election of Sahibazada Sahib alloawable to this extent that he takes bayat from non-Ahmadis in the name of Ahmad in order for them to be entered into the Silsalaa(Jamaat). However we do not consider it needed for baiat to be taken again from Ahmadis. We are ready to accept him as Ameer on the condition that the rights and ikhtiyaarat(powers) that Hazrat Masih Maud(AS) gave to it and made it it’s JANASHEEN(successor). Any type of taking over happens.
Conclusion
It is clear that the True Successor of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad(AS) was Khilafat!