Born in the British Empire before the First World War, he was the son of Mullah Muhammad Jasim ud'din Ahmed, who was a relative of Muhammad Faiz-ud'din Ahmed, the father of Muhammad Zunaid Ahmed. His paternal line was descended from Mullah Shah Badakhshi and were known as Mullahbari Kazi family, his father, a landowner in Shercole, maintained residences in the Bombay Presidency (near the present day Indian city of Mumbai) and in Darjeeling (then part of Nepal).
He attended Naogaon K.D. Government High School from where he matriculated in the mid 1930s. He was an only son, and his father died in his youth at 1923, and his mother, Khadeja Khanem was regent during his minority.[citation needed]
The deserted entrance way to the Qadi's durbar hall (Boithok Khaana) on the Mullahbare estate near the mansion
The title Mullah (Arabic: ملا) used by the family was used to show respect to educated Muslim leaders of the clergy.[1][2] The rulers of Muslim India used the institution of the Qadi (Arabic: قاضي), who was given the responsibility for total administrative, judicial and fiscal control over a territory or a town. He would maintain all the civil records as well.
He would also retain a small army or force to ensure that his rulings are enforced. In most cases, the kazi (qadi) would pass on the title and position to his son, descendant or a very close relative. Over the centuries, this profession became a title within the families, and the power remained within one family in a region. Throughout South Asia, various such families are found who descended through their ancestors and retained the lands and position. Each family is known by the town or city that their ancestors controlled.[3]
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