Chairman of Pakistan's Council of Islamic Ideology The head of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), an official body charged with advising the Pakistani government on issues related to Islam, Dr Masud with knowledge of six world languages is the author of many works on Islamic jurisprudence, the philosophy of law, current issues, and the concept of ijtihad. Born in Pakistan and academically trained at McGill University, Dr Masud has held numerous positions at universities and institutes in Canada, America, Pakistan, Nigeria, Malaysia, France, and the Netherlands. He was professor and academic director of the Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World at the University of Leiden.