ISLAMABAD: The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) noted on Thursday that only dictators had worked towards the ‘Islamisation’ of laws in the country, whereas democratic governments – especially the PML-N – had been working against Islamic norms.

The council also formally rejected Punjab’s recently-passed Protection of Women bill, as well as the draft of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Domestic Violence bill for encouraging Western norms in society.

Following the conclusion of the two-day CII meeting, Maulana Mohammad Khan Sherani and several council members denounced subsequent democratic governments for failing to ensure that all laws of the country are formulated in accordance with Islam.

“Pakistan was established on the basis of the two-nation theory and one of those nations are the followers of Islam. Therefore, all laws and principles in the country have to be in accordance with Islam,” Maulana Sherani said, adding, “But nearly all efforts to bring all laws under the ambit of Sharia have been undertaken in undemocratic eras.”

CII rejects Punjab, KP’s women protection laws; considers bills an attempt to draw women ‘out of the home’

He said that while the CII was established in 1962, six laws – including the Hudood Ordinance and the blasphemy law – were formulated on the recommendations of council in 1983, while the Objectives Resolution of 1949 was incorporated into the Constitution in 1985.

“These milestones towards Islamisation were achieved in undemocratic eras, but the PML-N, which carries the name ‘Muslim League’, is trying to undo all Islamic structures in the country,” Maulana Sherani maintained.

He was referring to the two bills scrutinised by the council on Thursday. While the Punjab Assembly has already approved the Protection of Women bill, the KP draft bill is unique in that this is the first instance in Pakistan’s history where a province has asked the CII to whet a law.

“Both the bills – the Punjab law and the KP draft – are contrary to Sharia, our culture and the norms of our society,” the CII chief said.

Both bills, he claimed, aimed to undo ‘family values’ as there was no mention of respectable relations such as mothers, sons/daughters, husbands and wives.

“The bills contain the terms ‘male/female child, persons etc’, which discourages relations based on family values – promoting the way they live in the West,” Maulana Sherani said, as other clerics belonging to the Shia, Deobandi and Barelvi sects nodded in appreciation. The lone woman in the CII, Dr Samia Raheel Qazi, was also among them.

The CII chairman said that another conspiracy to break the family structures was bringing women out of the protection of their homes.

“Now they want to encourage women to kick their husbands out and see them in chains – eventually the state and authorities will be in a position to control society,” he added.

The CII chief was asked if there were any alternative solutions for the issues and problems that had led Punjab t pass the bill.

“The solution is that Punjab should undo this Bill and then forward a formal request to the CII to suggest ways and means for the protection of women from domestic violence,” he said, adding that laws against domestic violence were already present in the Pakistan Penal Code.

Incidentally, the CII did not recommend any alternate Sharia-compliant solution for the KP government even though the draft bill against domestic violence was officially forwarded to the council for its opinion.

Published in Dawn, March 4th, 2016