Ali-Hajji of Akusha[a] (1847 – 8 April 1930) was a North Caucasian religious, military and political leader during the Russian Civil War.

Amidst the 1921–1928 Soviet anti-religious campaign he organised a group of religious leaders, forming a de facto parallel government in the Dargin District during the mid-1920s.

Born into the family of a muezzin, Ali-Hajji studied under several leading theologians in mid-19th century Dagestan, becoming a member of the ulama in his native village.

[2] Ali considered leaving Dagestan to further his religious studies, but as-Suguri successfully convinced him to remain in the region, urging him to achieve renown in his homeland.

[5] Despite this, he partook in a 1914 ceremony greeting Emperor Nicholas II in Derbent as he travelled to observe the Caucasus campaign of World War I.

[1] In contrast to many Islamic religious leaders in Dagestan, who refused cooperation with the Bolsheviks, Ali-Hajji established a close relationship with them, though the date marking the beginning of their interactions is disputed.

Ali-Hajji ultimately won the election and was appointed to the post after receiving support from the Dagestan Socialist Group, an alliance including Bolsheviks and various other leftists.

"[12] The Armed Forces of South Russia invaded Dagestan [ru] in May 1919, bringing an end to the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus.

[14] At first, the White-appointed Governor of Dagestan, Mikail Khalilov [ru], attempted to bargain with Ali-Hajji, promising that he would be allowed to retain the title of shaykh al-Islām if he defected to the Whites.

This was complicated, however, by generals of the Ottoman Empire such as Nuri Pasha and Kâzım Bey,[19] who had come to the North Caucasus at the behest of Ali-Hajji and Uzun-Hajji to fight the Whites.

The Ottoman officers, too, sought to subvert the Security Council in order to create a group of pro-Ottoman puppet states in the North Caucasus.

[22] The Bolsheviks ultimately succeeded in taking over the council, removing Ali-Hajji and replacing him with the communist Sultan-Said Kazbekov [ru] on 7 February 1920.

[20] The 11th Red Army entered the North Caucasus in late March 1920,[23] and Korkmasov was placed in charge of a revolutionary committee governing all of Dagestan.

[26] Ali-Hajji began to travel throughout Dagestan in protest of Soviet religious policy, followed by a growing number of supporters.

[29] The daughter of Akusha's party organisational secretary later recounted that Ali-Hajji's loyalists effectively governed the village in parallel to Soviet institutions, frequently protesting at places where the latter gathered.

[30] In the period between 1925 and 1927, Ali-Hajji continued to travel around the Dargin District, giving speeches to large crowds of people as they visited him.

[32] In December 1928 the Dagestan branch of the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) launched a criminal investigation against a group of people believed to be involved in counter-revolutionary activities.

All but one of the alleged group's members (Ali-Hajji himself) were arrested; of the 65, several were executed by firing squad, with the remainder sent to Gulag or internal exile.