A heated debate was observed on Wednesday between the conservative and liberal group in the meeting of National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior over the Hudood laws, which were subsequently deferred to the next meeting without any breakthrough.
The committee met in the Parliament House with Sardar Talib Hussain Nakai in the chair.
The Hudood laws including the Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) (Amendment) Act, 2005; the Offence of Qazf (Enforcement of Hadd) (Amendment Act, 2005 and Hudood Laws (Repeal) Act, 2005, tabled by the lawmakers of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians, Kanwar Khalid Younus of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Kashmala Tariq , a treasury MNA, were discussed in the meeting.
The movers strongly objected that the laws are discriminatory particularly to women, minorities and children, saying that these should not be amended but repealed.
Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal lawmakers strongly opposed the proposals with arguments and examples from the Quran, Sunnah and Islamic jurisprudence. They opined that there was nothing wrong with the Hudood laws, but due to loopholes in the administrative system these laws are not being implemented properly.
Dr Fareed Piracha of the MMA condemned the remarks of the liberal group saying that any law which is derived from the Quran and Sunnah could not be termed as 'black law'.
He said that we follow the British laws with great respect but are not ready to introduce Islamic system in the society.
Dr Piracha claimed that Council of Islamic Ideology had studied the Hudood laws for fourteen months and also consulted with the international experts before their enforcement.
He also said that Ulema from all schools of thought had been consulted and taken into confidence in this regard.
The MMA MNA defended the provision of four males as eyewitness evidence for rape case, saying that it was mandatory to prevent the false cases, which are often registered against rivals.
Hanif Abbasi of the MMA said that Islam does not allow such a law that is based on personal desires. He pointed out that almost 98 percent of women recently released from different jails were not arrested under Zina Act.
Dr Atta-ur-Rehman of the MMA said that laws and procedures relating to the police should be amended instead of Hudood laws.
PPPP's Mujeeb Pirzada said that these laws are the product of a Martial Law and have nothing to do with Islam or the fundamental human rights. He especially thanked President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz for their due consideration.
Referring to the Article 25 of the Constitution, he said these laws negate it by differentiating between male and female in the society.
"We have to have a society based on tolerance, which Islam teaches us" he remarked.
Kashmala Tariq said that it was an ideal time to repeal the controversial laws, which are not only against the human rights but also defaming Islam and Pakistan in the world.
Fauzia Wahab observed that the Hudood Ordinance was basically brought to please the supporters of Nizam-e-Mustafa to prevent the reaction emerged due to Z A Bhutto's case.
Syed Qurban Ali Shah of the PPPP said that these laws are contradictory to the Islam, humanity and international laws, which should be abolished.
Kanwar Khalid Younus, the mover of one of the bills, sought support of all the liberal forces to repeal them in the upcoming session of the National Assembly.
Shahid Akram Bhinder, State Minster for Law and Justice, informed the meeting that the government has suggested to amend them and consultation with Council of Islamic Ideology is underway in this regard.
He said that the government would bring its own Bill and it would be thoroughly debated in the House.