The Islamabad High Court has permitted a 15-year-old girl to live with her husband. The court stated in a 24-page decision that, according to Sharia, the marriage of a minor is not considered invalid, but it is a crime under law. According to Sharia, if a girl becomes an adult and marries of her own free will, the marriage is considered valid. However, the Islamabad Child Marriage Restraint Act 2025 clearly states that marriage under the age of 18 is a crime.
Meanwhile, Maulana Mamunul Haque, a leader of the Khilafat Majlis in Bangladesh, said in an interview that 70% to 80% of the country’s people wanted Sharia rule. Maulana cited a survey by the National Consensus Commission for this. However, the Consensus Commission denied this and said that there was no question related to Sharia law in the survey.
Maulana later admitted that he had mistakenly cited a survey conducted by the ‘Resolve Network’ in 2017 as a survey by the National Consensus Commission. After gaining power in August 2021, the Taliban implemented Sharia law in Afghanistan according to their interpretation. This included public executions, cutting off hands and feet, and flogging.
Why is there support for Sharia?
Now the question is why Sharia law is getting support in Bangladesh and Pakistan. Many times, political parties use it to strengthen their grip on power or to gain public support. Sometimes this issue is raised to gain political advantage.
Both countries face economic, social and political challenges, due to which many people want change. At the same time, some groups consider it a way to maintain religious identity and morality in society. However, there is also a very large section that considers it a threat to modern law and human rights.
What is Sharia law?
Sharia law can be called Islamic law. It is actually a principle derived from the words (Hadiths), actions (Sunnahs) and the Quran of the Prophet Muhammad. These principles govern various aspects of life. This law is fully implemented in some Muslim countries of the world, while it is partially implemented in many Muslim-majority countries. In most Muslim countries, Sharia law is applied only in personal matters such as marriage and inheritance. Laws made by governments are applied on other civil and criminal issues.
In how many countries is Sharia law implemented?
There are laws in approximately 50 Muslim-majority countries in the world that refer to Sharia, but they can be divided into three categories. The first category includes countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran, Sudan and Afghanistan, where Sharia law is strictly implemented and it is the supreme law. There are a total of about 7 to 10 countries. These include Yemen, Mauritania and Brunei.
The second category includes countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, Algeria, Morocco, Indonesia and Malaysia. Where Sharia is applied only in personal matters (marriage, divorce, inheritance), while in other cases civil law is followed.
The third category includes countries like India, Thailand, Philippines and Singapore where Sharia is applied to a limited extent in some special cases for Muslims only. In the modern era, most Muslim countries have adopted European legal systems and Sharia has been limited to personal laws.
