- ‘No one has right to declare anyone non-Muslims’
The Islamic Research Institute (IRI) of the International Islamic University of Islamabad (IIUI) is all-set to arrange a high-level conference in the federal capital in October to be attended by Islamic jurists (Muftis) – who interprets and expounds religious law – from different Muslim countries.
The Muftis are jurists qualified to give authoritative legal opinions known as fatwas. During the conference, the State Muftis likely to endorse the fatwa recently signed by 31 religious scholars, declaring suicide attacks and armed struggle against the state forbidden (Haram).
It is pertinent to mention here that the decree, and communiqué signed by 31 Islamic scholars were presented at the concluding ceremony of a seminar on – Reconstruction of Pakistani society in the light of Madina Charter – and announcement of the Paigham-e-Pakistan, organised by IRI at the Faisal Masjid campus on Saturday.
Talking to Pakistan Today, IRI Director General Dr Ziaul Haq said that Pakistan was passing through critical phase of its history, so it was decided to develop a counter narrative of terrorism to deal with the menace of terrorism once and for all.
In this regard, he said the conference would be held and Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif would be requested to host the event. He also said that training programmes for students would be conducted to involve young minds against the menace. The IRI was the brainchild of Allama Dr Muhammad Iqbal and was proposed in 1956 constitution.
However, the institute was constituted in 1960 with the purpose to reconstruct Pakistani society, he said. He said that the NACTA and other state and private institutes were mulling over as how the society could be reconstructed, but all these were working on private capacity to develop a counter narrative but no progress was made in this regard.
Zia said that it was need of the hour to counter the issue through religious point of view, because the extremists’ point of view was based on religion and it needed to be dealt with religious counter narrative. He said that President Mamnoon Hussain visited the university and stated that it should work on it. “So we are contacting all schools of thoughts and the Islamic seminaries who showed willingness to collaborate in this regard,” he said.
He said that the first portion of the 22-point communiqué of the Paigham-e-Pakistan consists of theological background and the second portion had to implement by the state. “So it is the first ever unanimous fatwa by all the mainstream Islamic scholars,” he added. “We suggested to the government to publicize the counter narrative and should be made part of the government’s policy,” he maintained.
He said that they did not single out that the Islamic seminaries were involved in terrorism but all educational institutions, which involved or promote militant mindset were enemy so “we have to fight against it.” Besides, they agreed that all schools and mosques should be used by all people – irrespective of their school of thoughts – and sermon should be not used for hate, he said, adding that no one has the right to declare any one non-Muslims.
The seminar was also attended by Mufti Muneebur Rehman, Mufti Rafi Usmani, Maulana Hanif Jalandhari, Mufti Muhammad Naeem, Maulana Abdul Razzak Sikandar, Allama Riaz Hussain Najafi, Maulana Muhammad Yasin Zafar, Maulana Ghulam Muhammad Sialvi, Maulana Zahid Mahmood Qasmi, Mufti Mahmoodul Hassan Mahmood, Maulana Hamidul Haq Haqqani and others.
