31 Facts About Ajmal Masroor

Ajmal Masroor is a Bangladeshi-born British imam, broadcaster and political activist.

Ajmal Masroor is well known for being a television presenter on political discussions and on Muslim channels.

Ajmal Masroor moved back to Bangladesh a few years later, aged seven, due to his father's concerns about different cultures, and the possibility of losing their Muslim identities.

When living in the East End, Ajmal Masroor experienced racism against the Bangladeshi community in the area, with properties being damaged.

Ajmal Masroor was brought up in Shadwell, and attended the Bluegate Fields School on Cable Street.

At the age of 19, his father attempted to force him into a marriage in Bangladesh, but was unsuccessful because Ajmal Masroor challenged his father, saying forced marriage is not acceptable in Islam.

Ajmal Masroor then married a Hungarian, Henrietta Szovati, and they now have two children.

Ajmal Masroor went to Hammersmith and West London College to study his GCSEs and A Levels.

Ajmal Masroor took admission at the School of Oriental and African Studies to study BA politics and Arabic, and then a master's at Birkbeck College in Islamic studies.

Ajmal Masroor is a travelling imam, who leads Friday prayers at various mosques across the United Kingdom, including Palmers Green mosque, West Ealing mosque, Wightman Road mosque, and Finsbury Park Mosque in London, as well as Abdullah Quilliam Mosque in Liverpool.

Ajmal Masroor is invited to lead Friday prayers at Leeds Grand Mosque and Greenwich Islamic Centre occasionally.

Ajmal Masroor joined the Islamic Society of Britain, serving as its chairperson from 2016 to 2019.

Ajmal Masroor stood for the office of secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain in January 2021.

Ajmal Masroor was the director of Communities in Action, an organisation founded to empower communities to organise, deliver and realise their full potential.

Ajmal Masroor was the chairman of ChildrenPlus, a charity that focused on providing humanitarian assistance to poverty stricken and most vulnerable children around the world.

Ajmal Masroor was selected as the Liberal Democrats prospective parliamentary candidate for West Ham at the 2005 general election, but stood down after being criticised for posting on the Muslim Public Affairs Committee forum.

Ajmal Masroor stood in Bethnal Green and Bow at the 2010 general election, representing the Liberal Democrats, and came second with 10,210 votes, behind the Labour candidate, Rushanara Ali, who won with 21,784 votes.

Ajmal Masroor is a well known broadcaster and presenter on various TV and radio channels in the UK.

Ajmal Masroor is part of the panel in a programme broadcast by Channel 4, called Shariah TV.

On 10 May 2009, Ajmal Masroor presented a programme called Celebrity Lives - Sharia Style, which was broadcast on BBC One.

Ajmal Masroor has appeared on major news channels, such as the BBC and CNN as a commentator on social, political and religious issues.

In October 2013, Ajmal Masroor was alerted by anti-terrorist police that he and a number of other prominent Muslim figures in the UK who had spoken out against Islamist extremism were targeted by a propaganda video created by Al-Shabaab, the terrorist group responsible for the attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Kenya: the video urged jihadists in the UK to take action, citing the murder of Lee Rigby as an example to follow.

In July 2015, Ajmal Masroor was interviewed by Nadia Ali on BBC Asian Network about his Ramadan memories.

Ajmal Masroor spoke at an event immediately after the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, and said that Mohammed bin Salman was directly responsible for the murder of Khashoggi.

Ajmal Masroor added that Bin Salman should be tried for his crime.

Ajmal Masroor said that Saudi Arabia was ruled by an illegitimate regime, and the civilised world should boycott the country; not sell them arms or intelligence; and should never offer its rulers the red carpet treatment when they come to the UK or Europe.

Ajmal Masroor's interests include learning about new cultures and world food, playing badminton, and reading about history, society and politics.

Ajmal Masroor has a brother, Mustafa Almansur, who was the organiser of the Grenfell Tower protests in 2017.

On 17 December 2015, Masroor was stopped by a US embassy staff from boarding Virgin Atlantic flight at Heathrow Airport to John F Kennedy International Airport.

Ajmal Masroor was informed that his US business visa had been revoked, and received no further explanation as to why he was being prevented from travelling, despite travelling to the US four times earlier in the year.

In January 2013 and 2015, Ajmal Masroor was nominated for the Religious Advocate of the Year award at the British Muslim Awards.