Tariq Jameel

Tariq Jameel is a Pakistani preacher and scholar, born in Mian Channu, Punjab, on 1 October 1953, and a member of the Tablighi Jama'at. He is a recipient of the Pride of Performance award, and The Muslim 500, published by the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought in Jordan, has named him among the world's most influential Muslims in every edition since 2012; in the 2024 edition he was ranked 34th, and he topped YouGov polls in 2018 and 2020 as Pakistan's most admired man. ¹

Jameel was born to a well-off Punjabi Rajput family of large landholders, said by the article to descend from Prithviraj Chauhan, the 12th-century ruler; his family ruled Tulamba, near Mian Channu, under Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century. He completed his primary education at Central Model School, Lahore, graduated from Government College University, Lahore, and received his Islamic education at Jamia Arabia (Madrasa Arabia), Raiwind, where he studied the Qur'an, hadith, Sufism, logic and Islamic jurisprudence. He had enrolled at King Edward Medical College, Lahore, after pre-medical studies, but left without completing his MBBS when he decided to pursue religious education. ^{1 2}

Jameel has delivered religious sermons internationally. His sermons focus on self-purification, avoidance of violence, observance of God's commands and following the way of the Prophet ﷺ Muhammad, and he has supported ethnic and sectarian harmony, encouraging unity between all denominations of Islam, as the article reports from the studies and coverage of his work. ¹

His recorded sermons circulate widely on digital platforms; his official YouTube channel has millions of subscribers (about 8.84 million by vidIQ's count read on 3 November 2026 — a dated platform figure, not a museum-verified fact). ¹

In March 2021 Jameel launched his flagship clothing brand, MTJ, headquartered in Karachi; the revenue is said to fund his madrasas and to build schools and hospitals in Pakistan. He also launched the Maulana Tariq Jamil Foundation, a non-profit in Tulamba, Khanewal, which gathers funds for social work, health and education, including an ambulance service. ¹

This section sets out positions as reported in the sources; it is not a verdict by the museum. In April 2020, Jameel blamed God's wrath at dishonesty in society and the immodesty of women for the outbreak and spread of COVID-19. Human rights proponents and other members of Pakistani society condemned the remarks; Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari called them "misogynistic" and "ignorant" and "absolutely unacceptable". He later apologised for the remarks. ¹

His Urdu books include Majmua Bayanat-e-Jameel (Collected Sermons of Jameel, 2014), Hamare Masail Ka Hal (The Solution to Our Problems, 2014) and Guldasta-e-Ahle Bayt (A Bouquet of the Ahl al-Bayt, 2018). ¹

He received the Pride of Performance award in education (religion), announced in 2020 and conferred by President Arif Alvi. ^{1 2}

• English Wikipedia, "Tariq Jamil", as read on 4 November 2026. ¹
• Urdu Wikipedia, "طارق جمیل", as read on 4 November 2026. ²