“Religious groups” manipulate Islamic laws to suit their preferences, stated the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) chairman on Thursday.
“No law prescribes the death penalty for desecrating the Holy Quran, yet some religious elements resort to mob justice to kill suspects,” Dr. Raghib Hussain Naimi said. “This behavior is not only un-Islamic but also contrary to the law of the land.”
Speaking to the media at the CII office, Dr. Naimi explained that blasphemy laws have four distinct punishments. The penalty for desecrating the Holy Quran is life imprisonment, while insulting members of the Holy Prophet’s (peace be upon him) household and his companions (Sahaba) carries a seven-year imprisonment, according to the CII chief.
The punishment for violating the Prohibition of Qadianiyat Ordinance is three years imprisonment. The law prescribes the death penalty only for those proven guilty of blaspheming against the Holy Prophet (PBUH), Dr. Naimi clarified. “But religious groups wrongly believe that all four offenses warrant the death penalty and take the law into their own hands.”
“No one has the authority to issue a Fatwa calling for the killing of an individual suspected of blasphemy,” Raghib Naimi emphasized.
He criticized certain religious elements for “exploiting popular sentiment for political gain.”
When asked about the perception that the CII has failed to identify and isolate clerics who issue inflammatory statements or incite violence over blasphemy, the CII chairman shared his own recent experience.
“I declared that issuing a Fatwa for the death of the Chief Justice of Pakistan was Haram. Shortly after, I received up to 500 threatening messages, some filled with abusive language,” Dr. Naimi recounted.
He noted that “the more reasonable voices within religious circles” are often intimidated by extremists.
The CII has repeatedly asserted that issuing a Fatwa to kill or taking the law into one’s own hands is illegal, unconstitutional, and against the principles of Sharia. “Sharia does not authorize any individual to take another person’s life,” the CII chairman reiterated.
He expressed concern over the growing intolerance in society, regretting that many people become “emotionally charged after consuming media messages,” yet are unwilling to understand religious matters in their true context.
“It is clear in every respect that only the state has the authority and the right to punish those found guilty of any form of blasphemy,” Dr. Naimi concluded.
