ISLAMABAD, Aug 5: Students of selected madressahs of the capital in a discussion at the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) on Friday agreed to the need of reviving ‘ijtihad’ to cope with the present day issues but put conditions on how to do it.

“Ijtihad is needed because as a multi-fiqh nation we must have an agreed Islamic framework for all and also the world order, which governs relations between nation states, conflicts in some aspects with the Islamic principles,” said CII Director General Mohammad Ilyas Khan in his opening remarks at the discussion arranged as part of the celebration of CII’s establishment 43 years ago.

Student Abdullah of Jamia Salfiah said issues already settled by Quran, Sunnah or the fiqhs of Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Shafei, Imam Malik or Imam Humbal were not open to ‘ijtihad’. Issues not addressed by these authorities, however, could be resolved through “collective ijtihad”, he contended.

In any case the solution, to be found by “competent” scholars, “must be within the bounds of Quran and Sunnah”, he said.

“Ijtihad done on the pretext that what Islam said on an issue conflicted with wisdom would not be acceptable,” he added.

Jamia Muhammadia’s Abdul Rehman admitted that solutions have to be found for new problems but said, “wisdom in itself can not be the guide” to the exclusion of the eternal truth in Quran and Sunnah.

“In the garb of reforming the Muslim community, the modernists are seeking to subvert Islam,” he said.

His colleague, Shakir Sami, went even farther. “Why this talk of reconstructing the Islamic society? Did not the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) complete the job 1400 years ago?” he asked.

“It would be foolish to attempt reconstruction under the influence of Europe,” he warned.

But he did agree to the need of ‘ijtihad’ because he said “problems are unlimited while (Islamic) injunctions are limited (in number). We cannot stop the world from moving on but neither can we flow with it”.

Mr Sami said ‘ijtihad’ should also address “Europe’s propaganda identifying terrorism with Muslims” and “how to save Muslims from the West’s coercive domination”.

Only two students addressed the question of education in the Islamic society.

Shoaib Mohammad of Idara Uloom-i-Islami stressed on acquiring modern knowledge along with the religious knowledge. “Without the contemporary knowledge we cannot reach the correct solution,” he said.

A student of Jamia Rizvia said the education system was central to building a nation. Since secular system would produce secular minds, he called for replacing the present “class-based system of education with a uniform one for all which alone would lay the foundation of an Islamic society in the country”.

CII Director-General Ilyas Khan agreed with them. “Knowledge for the sake of knowledge is necessary. Today we are at the receiving end. We cannot isolate ourselves. We need to acquire secular knowledge for a take-off,” he stressed.