ABDUL RASHEED AZAD

ISLAMABAD: The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) has termed forced conversions unconstitutional as well as against the teachings of Islam.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Chairman CII Dr Qibla Ayaz also termed some sections of the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) against the Shariah laws.

The chairman CII said the forced conversion of religion was violation of the Islamic teachings and also breach of the Pakistani Constitution. He said the council held a two-day long meeting during which it concluded that Sections 14-D, 15-A and 26 of the NAO are un-Islamic.

The Section 14 of the law pertains to presumption against accused accepting illegal gratification, Section 15 pertains to disqualification to contest elections (or to hold public office) and Section 26 pertains to the tender of pardon.

Ayaz said that according to the council, handcuffing suspects and airing footage of the arrest on media was un-Islamic. Additionally, the council said it was not the suspects’ responsibility to prove their guilt and keeping a suspect in custody for long periods without a case also went against Islamic principles.

As per the CII, plea bargains and turning of suspects into approvers is also against the Shariah. Ayaz said with the National Accountability (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019, the accountability law will become further discriminatory. “The NAB law is not compatible with Islamic laws on crime and punishment,” Dr Ayaz said, adding that the council will also review amendments to the law.

Last month, through a presidential ordinance, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government made drastic changes in the country’s accountability law.

In addition to discussing the NAB law, the CII during its two-day meeting also presented its recommendations for the prevention of sexual violence against children. The CII recommended that a special court be formed to look at such incidents.

Shortly after Dr Ayaz’s press conference, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter to express “serious concerns” about existence of the CII and questioned the performance of the council.

“Till today the religious segments of the country have not received any guidance from the ideological council,” he said, adding he could not understand the logic behind spending millions of rupees on such an institution.

In response to the federal minister’s remarks, Dr Ayaz said Chaudhry’s tweet was beyond his comprehension, adding the government, Supreme Court and a high court had all expressed dissatisfaction over the NAB law. “We have reviewed the NAB law from the perspective of the Shariah,” he added.