Mrs Amatul Hafeez Salaam
(A Great Lady)

The organisation of Lajna Imaullah was set up in London in the early fifties. The first President was Mrs. Naseem. She was the wife of Dr. Muhammad Naseem of Allahabad, India. Dr. Naseem was a retired Judge of Allahabad High Court. Mrs Naseem was very close to Begum Ikramullah,the wife of the then High Commissioner of Pakistan. Begum Ikramullah was the niece of Husain Shaheed Suhurwardi, who had served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Begum Ikramullah attended Lajna meetings at the mosque on many occasions.

Mrs Chaudhri Muhammad Ashraf took over from Mrs. Nasim, for a brief period, as Sadr Lajna London.In those early days Lajna was a very small organisation of a handful of ladies, but this was soon to change.

A large number of Ahmadi families had arrived in Britain during early sixties and had settled all over Britain, and a dynamic leadership of Lajna was needed. Her undoubted talents were recognised, and Mrs Salaam was elected to organise and establish Lajna on a firm footing. Mrs Salaam was educated in Qadian and had met a large number of the Ahmadi ladies who had the honour of meeting Hazrat Masih Mauood, Alaihisalam. She had close relationship with Hazrat Amman Jan, the wife of the Promised messiah and with other ladies of the family of the Promised Messiah. She herself belonged to a very religious and pious family. Her knowledge of the Holy Quran and Hadidh was immense and she had read most of the books of the Promised Messiah and his Successors.

Mrs Salaam personally trained and organised around her a loyal, enthusiastic and hard working team of Lajna who assisted her in the gigantic task of organising, training and educating the members of Lajna all over Britain. This was a time of great Lajna expansion under her leadership and she personally travelled all over the UK, and established dozens of Lajna branches. She was a scholar in her own right and had a deep and profound understanding of Islamic teaching based on Quran & Sunnah.This was invaluable in her struggle to educate and enlighten Ahmadi women of the UK. Despite this wealth of knowledge and wisdom she remained accessible and available to young and old within Lajna. This was an inspiring characteristic of this noble lady.

It was a great sacrifice for her to devote so much time to the welfare of the ladies of the Jamaat in UK as being the wife of a great Scientist she had to offer hospitality to the vast circle of her husband's friends and well wishers. She was also a mother and was obliged to give her children good religious education and to make them good Ahmadis. She discharged all these duties most diligently and in a cheerful manner.
I was the Imam of the London Mosque and Missionary In charge in those days. It was my duty to oversee and guide the Lajna organisation. We regularly used to discuss ways and means of how to train and educate the ladies of the Jamaat. Being the President, Mrs Salaam had a greater responsibility of educating the ladies section of the Jamaat. It was not an easy task. There were those Nasirat (Young girls) who were born and brought up in the UK. They had problems of Purdah, mixed schools and employment in organisations where they had to interact with male colleagues. They needed guidance and education. Mrs Salaam and her team discharged their duties in guiding the younger female generation and helped resolve their problems in a most diligent manner.

Mrs Salaam was a dynamic leader and a great and organiser. She established branches of Lajna all over the UK. She visited all these branches often and inculcated among them the spirit of sacrifice, enthusiasm and loyalty to their Faith and to Khifate Ahmadiyya. Mrs Salaam was also a housewife. Her husband Dr. Abdus salaam was a Scientist of world repute and his circle of friends was vast. Mrs Salaam entertained her husband's friend at home and looked after them. Every Sunday Dr. Salaam would invite some of his friends to brunch at his home. Mrs Salaam used to prepare delicious dishes for these occasions. I often attended such brunch parties. Sir Zafrullah Khan was also a regular participant.

Mrs Salaam had her own children to love and care for and she brought them up with great care and loving attention. She saw to it that every one of them should be able to read, recite and understand the meanings of the Holy Quran. She imparted religious knowledge to them and made them loyal servants of Khilafate Ahmadiyya.
For instance during the visits of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III she would send her eldest daughter Aziza Salaam to the Mission House to be in the service of Huzoor and Begum Sahiba and to help Mrs Rafiq with the duties of the house. Aziza had thus the great honour of being a host of the Khalifa and his wife. It is solely due to Mrs Salaam's training and vehement prayers that all her children are servants of Islam and Ahmadiyyat even to this day.

Mrs Salaam started regular monthly Lajna meetings at the Mission House. Missionaries, companions of the Promised Messiah in general and Sir Muhammad Zafrullah Khan in particular were invited to address these meetings. She started special Talimul Quran classes for the Nasirat to learn the Holy Quran and other religious subjects. She would arrange picnics for Lajna from time to time, so that they had some relief from their household chores.

I sometime wonder how she could manage to discharge her multifarious duties so amicably. She was truly a beacon of light for the ladies of the United Kingdom. Ladies of the Jamaat would pour out their hearts to her to obtain her advice. They had a great trust in her and valued her advice and guidance, and most importantly had the confidence that their problems would never be disclosed. Mrs Salaam's door was open to all and sundry. There were no formalities and no ceremonies.
Mrs Salaam was a generous, forgiving and a loving lady. She truly acted upon the motto of the Ahmadiyya Jamaat, "Love for all and hatred for none".
One of the traits of her character was her humility and obedience. She used to follow the instructions of Saddar Lajna Imaullah (central) and the Khilafat with utmost obedience. Her relationship with me as the Imam was excellent. We worked together for more than twenty years. During this long period of time there was never any difference of opinion between us. She complied with any directions that I issued with full cooperation and utmost devotion as Sadar Lajna.
When she passed away the UK Jamaat in general and Lajna in particular lost a great benefactor, a loyle friend, a pious lady who prayed for them and a well wisher. She will be missed and remembered in the annals of Jamaat Ahmadiyya UK for a long time.

May Allah showere His choicest blessings upon her and may she rest in peace.