EDITORIAL: Ijma is an Arabic term referring to the consensus or agreement of the Muslim community on a point of Islamic law. The word ‘Ijma’ in original sense means ‘coming together’ or ‘concurrence’ and it came to denote the unanimous authority of the Prophet’s Companions (RA) on a point of law.
Later and more broadly it was taken to mean the concurrence of the body of informed Muslims on points of behaviour or the force of public opinion. It must not be against the text of the Holy Quran or the fundamental principles of Islam and Sunnah.
It is “Ijtihad” of the Muslim jurists, and is necessitated when a direction is needed to deal with contemporary issues and challenges and at the same time to be in harmony with fundamentals of Muslim Law.
One such issue that confronts the Muslim world is extremism in the name of Islam, as it calls for jihad against the rulers and governments in Muslim states. The question where the call for jihad stands in the Muslim states has been answered by 16 religious scholars of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa through an edict (fatwa).
The edict deals with issues like who can declare jihad; obedience to constitution of a Muslim state; those killed in defence of a Muslim state are martyrs; and a rebel against a Muslim state deserves to be crushed by force. Given the murderous surge in the cases of terrorism or extremism in the name of Islam in the country, the edict issued by the Ijma in Peshawar on Monday is indeed a call of the hour and must be looked into and be followed by the people of Pakistan.
According to the edict issued by eminent religious scholars, only the head of an Islamic state — which Pakistan is under Article 2 of the Constitution — is entitled to declare jihad and “anyone involved in revolt against the state is required to be crushed in the light of the principles of Islam”.
Revolt against an Islamic state is outlawed by the edict, as it says “all citizens of an Islamic country have to respect the law, and refusing to follow the Constitution (of the Islamic country) is prohibited according to Shariah”.
Protection of Pakistan is the responsibility of all of its citizens, including the military and police deployed to defend the country, and “when killed in the battle against enemies (they) are martyrs”. The edict also pointed out that a religious scholar in Islamabad as well as some enemies and some anti-state elements have been issuing provocative and controversial statements.
The scholars at the Peshawar meeting did note that Western democracy is against the teachings of Islam and “someone who declares the parliament’s decision submissive to the Holy Quran, should not be declared as misled”. They justified the need to move with the time, as they said “no religious scholar has termed wearing tie and trousers is against Islam”, and did not object to wearing them at offices as well.
All that is part of the edict is need of the hour in Pakistan. There is the essential need that the generality should be able to see the difference between the religious extremism and sacred but pragmatic role of Islam in the life of a Muslim.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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