The Islamic Ideology Council (CII) rejected a bill on Tuesday prohibiting marriage under the age of 18, the appellant “non -Islamic” and incompatible with Sharia law.
The bill, recently adopted by the National Assembly and approved by the Senate, aimed to prohibit children’s marriages in the territory of the capital of Islamabad (ICT), the criminalization of unions involving any person under 18 years of age. The CII said that the provision of legislation to define the marriage of minors as rape and imposed sanctions contradicting Islamic lessons.
During its last meeting, the Council criticized the bill for the prohibition for the wedding prohibition of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the bill on the prohibition of child marriage “, arguing that it was contrary to sharia, expressing the concern that the legislation had not been sent to the CII for examination before its presentation to Parliament.
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It concluded with an official declaration rejecting the federal bill, initially tabled by the legislative of the Pakistani peoples Sharmila Farooqui.
In addition, the council expressed that, although the Thalassémie tests before marriage can be encouraged, it should not be made compulsory. He stressed the importance of maintaining marriage procedures free from unnecessary complexities, in accordance with Islamic principles.
The Council referred to the 2013 law on prevention and control of the Sindh thalassemia, which makes couples compulsory to undergo thalassemia tests before marriage. He also condemned societal pressure on families – in particular the brides – to provide dowry, calling non -Islamic practice.
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The Council said that women should be authorized to keep their husband or parents’ home after marriage. He reiterated that, under Islamic law, a husband is not financially responsible for his divorced wife after the completion of his IDDAT (waiting period).
The CII also announced the training of a committee to examine and propose amendments to article 7 of the “bill to modify the laws on Muslim family 2025”, following a request from the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
In addition, the Council examined the National Accountability Bureau’s surveys on investment issues, housing regimes and Islamic profits sharing agreements such as Mudarabah.
