The inherent hypocrisy in the party and its founder
All religious parties in Pakistan, one or another, call for an Islamic Pakistan where Sharia is implemented. Either it is a Barelvi organisation or a Deobandi, Shia or Ahle Hadith, they promise Islamic Sharia system in their manifestos while ironically ‘protecting’ the rights of their respective sects.
One organisation which has vehemently campaigned for this cause is Jamat-i-Islami. Whether 1953 anti-Ahmadi riots or supporting Zia’s Islamisation, it has always supported the process as its politics revolve around this.
I have written how all these organisations apostatise each other on these pages and the irony of these proponents of an Islamic Pakistan. Jamat-i-Islami has been a part of various alliances who struggled to bring Sharia to the country. These alliances included Barelvi, Deobandi, Ahle Hadith and often Shia organisations.
However, JI and Maududi have been declared apostates, fitna and evil-beings by clerics of other sects in their books.
A famous Barelvi scholar Ahmed Saeed Kazmi writes: “Maududi found ignorance in Islam, saw Muslims as fraudulent, found Sufis and early scholars to be prostrating before ignorance, found mistakes in Sahaba and the rightly guided Caliphs.” (Anayat-i-Maududi, Page 5)
Quoting Maududi from Al Jihad fil-Islam, Allama Akhtar Shah Jahan Puri writes, “Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) preached Islam for 13 years, trying to convince people with reason and logic. He tried to convert people with his miracles and powerful speech but they refused. But, after all this, when he chose the way of sword, people started leaving their evildoings for Islam.” (Anayat-i-Maududi, Page 7)
Ghulam Ahmed Pervez in Iqbal aur Quran termed Maududi’s movement to be even more dangerous than that of Ahmadiyya. (Quoted from Anayat-i-Maududi, Page 8)
Deobandi clerics unanimously declared Maududi-ism as ‘fitna’ and advised Muslims to ‘stay away from it’.
Hussain Ahmed Madni writes, “Maududi’s movement, which is active in India and Pakistan under the name of Jamat-i-Islami, Ulema from all sects have asked the Muslims to stay away from it, for it will be dangerous for their faith.” (Maktoobat Sheikh-ul Islam, Volume 2, Page 307)
Maududi, like other clerics, wasn’t far behind in apostatisation and other-isation of opposite sects. About Shah Waliullah and Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi, he wrote, “The first thing I felt wrong in the work of Mujadid Alaf Thani, Shah Waliullah and their students is the disease tassawuf, which instead of forbidding it, they bestowed upon Muslims.” (Tajdeed o Ahyaa-i-deen, Page 89)
It is interesting to note here that both of the personalities are said to be the founders of the ideology that led to the formulation of Two-Nation Theory.
Some paragraphs about Maududi have been extensively quoted by Deobandi, Barelvi and Ahle Hadith clerics in their books to prove him blasphemous.
For instance, at one place, he writes: “Hadhrat Dawood became influenced by the common customs of the Israelites of his time and requested Auriya for a divorce.” (Tafheemat, Part 2, Page 42)
Criticising the third caliph, Osman, he wrote: “On one side, the Islamic rule was expanding rapidly and it was becoming tough to manage it but on the other hand, Osman was short of capabilities which his predecessors had. Thus, ignorance crept into Muslims.” (Tajdeed o Ahyaa-i-deen, Page 33)
Maulana Yousaf Binori, a prominent Deobandi cleric, in his editorial ‘The Maududi Calamity’, wrote: “He strongly and forcefully criticised all the factions involved in seeking the freedom of India.” (Page 4)
“I admired many things about Maududi and detested many. I didn’t foresee that this fitna would spread worldwide and have detrimental effect on the Arab world; that every day from his master pen, new bud would be blossoming and indecent words would be used for Sahaba and prophets,” Binori further added. (Page 8)
When asked if Maududi is an apostate, considering his ‘blasphemous’ remarks about prophets, Jamia Binoria decreed, “He cannot be termed to be out of the circle of Islam but he is not on the path and he leads others along with him to the wrong path.” (Fatwa No 35397)
Allama Matloob-u-Rehman Usmani, elder brother of Shabir Ahmed Osmani, said, “Maududi is the biggest fitna because the fitnas of Ghulam Ahmed Pervez and Ahmadis are open but those of Maududi’s are secret. (Quaid-e-Azam, Nazriya-e-Pakistan aur Islami Nizam – Maududi Ki Nazar Mein)
He further added, “Maududi is devil’s statue who has come on Earth under the cover of religion.” (Ibid)
PILDAT recently announced Jamat-i-Islami to be the most democratic party in Pakistan.
Interestingly, Maududi was against democracy as well. He wrote: “Where people are morally corrupt, it cannot be expected that they would choose right people who can govern according to Islamic rules.” (Quoted from Maulana Maududi aur Jamhooriyat, Page 14)
He compared the process of churning butter out of milk to democracy, saying if the milk was poisonous, the butter too would have stains of it. Thus, if the masses were corrupt, the leaders they choose would also be corrupt.
He further added that if voters were not truly Islamic in their lifestyle, it could not be expected of them to elect true Muslim as their rulers. (Ibid)
Jamat-i-Islami, like other religious organisations, is hypocritical, to say the least. Despite their founder being so blatantly against democracy, it takes part in elections and even wins seats. Their chants for an Islamic Pakistan should also be questioned in the light of the above-mentioned fatwas.
The mystery still shrouds as to how these parties will implement Sharia when they don’t agree on the most basic matters. It is about time the masses rejected their propaganda of promising something that is virtually impossible and if tried to be imposed upon, will lead to chaos in the country.
