A five-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed hearing a suo motu case regarding measures taken by the federal and provincial governments to combat the coronavirus pandemic has asked some pertinent and perhaps long overdue questions regarding transparency in distribution of Zakat and Baitul Mal funds. The court directed the authorities to consult the Council of Islamic ideology and Mufti Taqi Usmani, an Islamic scholar and former judge of the Shariat Appellate bench of the SC, on whether such funds could be utilised for paying salaries of the staff and day-to-day expenses of the organisation responsible for disbursing such funds to the needy. The SC also sought information on how Zakat and Baitul Mal funds are deducted, the criteria for selecting beneficiary families, the breakdown of the amount paid to them and the administrative expenses incurred for the purpose. The court questioned how the amount collected through people's contribution could be used for foreign trips, TA/DA or salaries. The SC directed the federal and provincial governments to submit a comprehensive report on the distribution of Zakat and Baitul Mal funds. The CJP observed that billions of rupees had been collected by these governments but the distribution process was not transparent. He went on to remark that something fishy was going on since the funds were supposed to go to needy people and were not meant for the visits and entertainment expenses of officials. Justice Umar Ata Bandial, a member of the bench, said that the court has been informed that the federal government collects Rs nine billion in Zakat, which is later shared with the provinces, but details of the disbursement had not been provided. He was of the view that the federal government should conduct an audit of the fund, a fiduciary responsibility that could not be seen as encroaching on provincial autonomy.

In our system of government, things have a peculiar way of being twisted in negation of the original purpose. Zakat deductions from people's savings accounts with banks were instituted by General Ziaul Haq, well known for his excessive Islamic zeal. This was a change from the way people traditionally contributed Zakat to needy people in their private capacity as enjoined by Islam. However, soon after the promulgation of the deduction system, Pakistan's ahlay-tashee were up in arms regarding their belief that Zakat could not be forcibly deducted from such accounts. An exception was then adopted to exempt Shias' accounts from such deduction at source beyond the limit set every year on the first day of Ramazan. Over time, this allowance came to be used by many people through declarations to their banks that they were ahlay-tashee and therefore their accounts should be exempted from such deductions. Later, an SC judgement held that Zakat being a voluntary contribution, any account holder was within his/her rights to move their bank not to deduct such amounts as they preferred to contribute Zakat privately and voluntarily rather than through the official fund. Not all account holders may be aware of this dispensation, which argues therefore for banks including in their account opening forms a clause asking whether the account holder would prefer exemption from deduction of Zakat from their accounts. Similarly, existing account holders should be informed and offered this option. People generally are wary of government-controlled charity funds precisely on the grounds the SC has raised: transparency and appropriate use. Long ago, Zakat committees were formed to ascertain needy families requiring help from Zakat and Baitul Mal funds. But like so many dispensations at the grassroots level, they seem to have disappeared without a trace, raising the very question the SC has asked: how are the needy identified today and why are such funds being spent on things other than disbursement to the deserving? While the SC has demanded answers that will hopefully bring a measure of transparency and appropriateness to the collection and disbursement of Zakat and Baitul Mal funds, similar concerns, as expressed by the SC, surround the billions of rupees spent to combat the coronavirus pandemic about which there is little or no information regarding the process and manner of spending these funds too.