IICHS - Institute for Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies

Farzaneh Babaei

Son of Seyyed Mohammad Hossein Pishnamaz Qanatabadi, seyyed Shams al-Din Qanatabadi nicknamed “Agha Shams” was born in Qanatabad neighborhood of Tehran, 1914. After his elementary education in old style school of Qanatabad, he entered Darolfonun. At the age of twenty, he went to religious school of Qom. Shortly after, upon the requests of the clergies of Qom, he was exiled from that city due to hooliganism and charges of immorality. He left Iran for the holy city of Najaf and lived in Iraq until 1946. Upon his return to Iran, he entered the political scene and made attempts to enter Ayatollah Kashani’s circle. He opened an official documents bureau in Tehran.

Subsequent to the assassination of Abdul Hossein Hazhir by Fadaian e Islam group, Mojtaba Navab Safavi founded the forum of Mujahed muslims in 1948, and Shams was the first president of this assembly.

The purpose of the forum was to follow up the activities of Fadaian e Islam. It included some members of guilds who were affiliated to the National movement and National front. Upon the separation of Mossaddeq from Ayatollah Kashani, this forum began to fight against Mossaddeq. Shams Qanatabadi, himself was of one the causes of this separation.

Qanatabadi entered the seventeenth majlis from Shahrud and was the first deputy to majlis. Three days after 19 August coup which led to the fall of Dr. Mossaddeq’s government, he met with Fazlollah Zahedi in the company of Baqai and Haerizadeh. For some time, he attended the meetings of consultative sessions with the coup prime minister.

After the fall of Dr. Mossaddeq, again through supports of Zahedi, Qanatabadi was elected a member of eighteenth majlis. In this term of majlis, he retained his position through strong speeches in the majlis. He accepted Hossein Ala and Assadollah Alam’s provisions to leave his cleric garb and elected a member of majlis from Khar and Eivanaki of Varamin. The Pahlavi regime admired his action. And Hossein Ala sent him a set of suit as a gift.

Since 1956, he left the political scene to enter business. He made close relationship with Mehdi Mirashrafi. He was active in trade and business until his death in 1988.