Fifteen years ago, on 22 April 2003, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad was elected Khalifatul Masih V. Those that remember the occasion will recall the magnificent manner in which God Almighty once again united the Jamaat under one leader.
Below are two testimonies of individuals who were present at the time of the election of Khalifatul Masih V and their faith-inspiring incidents at the time.
Mirza Fazl Ahmad sahib was in the same convoy as Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad sahibaa, en route to London for the Electoral College in 2003. Abid Khan sahib, in his diary, included some of Mirza Fazl Ahmad sahib’s reminiscences:
“I saw that Huzoor remained calm and probably did not even have time to consider his own personal grief, and his only worry was protecting the Jamaat at that time of crisis.”
Mirza Fazl Ahmad sahib had to go to Huzoor’s house to drop off or pick up something. He was told that Huzoor was saying his prayers.
“I could hear Huzoor engaged in the most fervent and desperate of prayers and could hear his utterly emotional state. Whilst in prostration, bowed before Allah, he was crying uncontrollably. I had never seen Huzoor in such a state ever before. Yet, when Huzoor returned to the public, he was composed again and, as far as I am aware, he remained so until the moment of his election as Khalifatul Masih V.”
Mirza Fazl Ahmad sahib narrates a very interesting incident from the road-journey to Lahore,
“I was also part of Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya and so I had arranged for some tea and biscuits at the services. It had already been a very long day and I knew no one had eaten and the elderly people would need something. However, when tea was served, one of our senior and elder office-bearers became very angry and said, ‘Is this any time to be drinking tea?’
“Emotionally, what he was saying was right that nobody wanted to eat or drink but the reality was that some of the elders could have collapsed if they did not eat or drink anything. Anyway, Huzoor observed this entire incident and I was worried that he too might admonish me, but without saying a single word, he picked up a cup and started to drink from it.
“Huzoor handled the delicate situation beautifully and with great wisdom. He neither said anything to the office-bearer who had scolded me, as he knew emotions were running very high, but at the same time, he also knew that people would need to eat or drink.”
Mohammad Sharif Odeh sahib, Amir Jamaat Kababir, was in London on 22 April 2003 to attend the convening of the Khilafat Electoral College. Below is one of his recollections of the momentous night:
“I was in the queue to enter the Fazl Mosque for the election when it occured to me that the person whom I should vote for was standing behind me. I thought it wasn’t right for me to be standing in front of him so I moved out of the queue and joined the back again. That very moment, I noticed two persons approaching the queue; one was Chaudhry Hameedullah sahib and the other I did not know. But as soon as I saw the other person, I felt a light penetrate my heart and I began wondering who he was. The feeling was so powerful that I felt as if I would die even before entering the Mosque. During the election, I realised that the person whose image had come to my mind like a ray of light was Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad sahib. When I raised my hand to vote for him, I saw that the majority had raised their hands. All my grief was gone and the happiness that I got at that moment was like no other I had experienced before in my life.”