Statement by Muhammad Zakariya Hanafi:

“Here the issue is: were the Ahl-e-Hadith and the Imams of Hadith followers (muqallid) or non-followers (ghair muqallid)? And if they were muqallid, then whom did they follow? There is a scholarly difference on this matter. The fact is that when someone becomes a prominent figure, everyone desires to claim them for their own party, because such personalities possess great appeal and attraction, and everyone tries to pull them to their side. For example, regarding Imam Bukhari (رحمه الله), the non-muqallids claim he was a non-muqallid, while the muqallids consider him a follower of a school. Likewise, many Shafi'i scholars in their biographical works have written him down as a Shafi'i. The correct position is that Imam Bukhari was a firmly established mujtahid (independent jurist).” [Taqrir Bukhari Sharif, p. 41]