INSIGHT
The religious circles for long have been pushing for the elimination of riba or usury from the economic system of the country to bring it in conformity with the Islamic Shariah.
In a latest such bid, Aakif Saeed, the head of the Tanzeem-e-Islami and son of late religious scholar Dr Israr Ahmed, had petitioned the Supreme Court to order the federal government to eliminate usury as constitutionally it is bound to it.
The apex court had dismissed Saeed’s petition in last October by saying that the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) is already seized with the matter, which is the proper forum for this matter to be taken up, but Saeed went into a review for the decision.
The Tanzeem-e-Islami has launched a countrywide campaign in recent months, urging the government to eliminate riba and enforce Shariah-based economic system in the country.
As part of this drive, the Tanzeem displayed banners at prominent places in all major cities inscribed with religious injunctions prohibiting riba.
Its members were also seen distributing pamphlets and leaflets in the major markets and shopping centers in the cities and towns across the country to create awareness against the riba-based economic system.
The two-judge bench led by Justice Amir Muslim Hani last week briefly held the preliminary hearing for the review petition and directed the newly appointed Attorney General Amir Muslim Hani to prepare his case within two weeks.
Saeed’s petition is a continuation of a long-drawn legal battle in the courts of the country for nearly three decades, without any tangible results so far.
The religious groups draw the strength for their demand from the Article 38 (F) of the constitution that called on the government to eliminate riba from the country as soon as possible.
A major development took place on the issue of riba in 1991 when the Federal Shariat Court ruled the bank interest as ‘un-Islamic’ by declaring it as riba.
The first government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif challenged the decision in the Supreme Court but the appeal was never heard for the next eight years.
The Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court took up the appeal in 2001 and upheld the decision of the Shariat Court. It gave the federal government until June 30, 2001 to comply with the FSC decision, review all banking laws and bring them in conformity with the Islamic teachings.
The government of General Pervez Musharraf in 2002 filed a review petition challenging the FSC verdict in the Supreme Court which in turn referred the case back to the FSC which did not take up the case for more than a decade.
The FSC again took up the case last year. The State Bank of Pakistan in those hearings maintained that while constitution called for the elimination of riba it did not explicitly define what actually riba is.
Moreover, it maintained the existing economic and banking system could not be abolished all together as no immediate alternative to it is available.
The central bank lawyer maintained Pakistan is a member of the international community and it could not live in isolation or detached from the outside world.
It is unfortunate that in Pakistan, the religious matters are mostly used for political purposes but very little scholarly work is done to ensure practical implementation of the demands of these lobbies.
Interestingly, none of the 53 Muslim countries have a complete riba-free economic system, which is being advocated by the religious lobbies in Pakistan.
According to experts, the economic and banking system in Saudi Arabia is the same as anywhere in the world while there is a difference of opinion among the religious scholars over the financial system prevailing in Iran.
“I can’t say the economic and banking system of any Muslim country is hundred percent Islamic,” a senior executive of an Islamic bank said.
“We need to initiate efforts to Islamise our economy. It can’t be done overnight. But at least we should start these efforts,” he added.
There is no doubt that Shariah-compliant banking is gaining huge popularity not only in the Islamic countries but in the West as well. It has come a long way since it was launched over four decades ago.
The Islamic financial industry is growing worldwide annually by more than 20 percent.
It is now operative in more than 75 countries and has assets worth over 1.3 trillion dollars worldwide.
In Pakistan, it has annually grown by over 30 percent and occupies 8.6 percent in terms of assets and around 10 percent in terms of deposits.
But despite these enormous successes, it could not be construed as a replacement to the existing economic and banking system. The experts believe that the industry in Pakistan as well as internationally is still in an evolutionary stage and requires concerted efforts to enhance its scope and reach.
Analysts say there is a need for elaborate research by religious scholars to prepare a viable blueprint for an economic system based on religious injunctions.
Dr Shahid Hasan Siddiqui, head of the Research Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance, believes that a lack of political will on the part of “civil and military bureaucracy” was the major hindrance in promoting riba-free economic system in the country.
He said international financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund have no problem to deal with Pakistan even if it enforces a Shariah-based economic system in the country but it is the ruling elite which does not want its interests to be compromised.
“This system was not enforced when the domestic debt was just 2,000 to 3,000 billion rupees (in the 1990s) then how would they implement it when the debt has risen to a whopping 12,000 and 13,000 billion rupees?,” he questioned.
“There is no political will. It’s all a political drama,” he added.
Moreover, he said, the religious lobbies also need to be realistic in making claims and mere sloganeering cannot resolve their problems.
“They need to relate their claims to the ground realities. Just sloganeering can’t help them.”
The writer is a senior journalist based in Islamabad
