NEW DELHI, Sept 18: A prominent Islamic religious school in northern India has suspended one of its scholars after a television sting operation allegedly caught him on tape issuing fatwas for money.

The Dar-ul-Uloom Deoband’s vice chancellor, Marghoobur Rahman, said Mufti Habibur Rahman was suspended on Sunday after he was allegedly seen on television accepting money, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

Mufti Marghoobur Rahman said a committee would investigate the matter and if found guilty the scholar would be dismissed.

Habibur Rahman was shown on television allegedly agreeing to issue fatwas on credit card and camera phone use, and on acting in films and watching television, in return for money, the report said.

After the incident, senior Deoband figures appealed to people to seek fatwas from prominent institutions to ensure their legality.

The school had great influence on Afghanistan’s former Taliban rulers.—AFP