Referring to Articles-28, -41 and -44 of the constitution, the ministry said the constitution leaves no room to meet Hafajat’s demand for declaring “Qadiani” people non-Muslims.
Source/Credit: The Daily Star
By Reaz Ahmad and Shakhawat Liton | April 11, 2013
13 Hefajat Demands | Law ministry finds 6 against constitution, 7 covered by existing laws
The law ministry has identified six out of the 13 demands of the Islamist group Hefajat-e Islam that go against the constitution and said the remaining seven are well covered by existing laws.
Hefajat-e Islam’s demand for restoration of the phrase “Absolute trust and faith in Almighty Allah” in the constitution as one of the fundamental principles of state policy goes against the basic spirit of the constitution, the law ministry said.
“Therefore, there is no constitutional obligation to meet the demand,” the law ministry said in its opinion prepared after reviewing the 13-point demands of Hefajat.
The law ministry made the review upon receipt of a letter from the foreign ministry on April 7, a day after the Hefajat long march to the capital.
Similarly, the Hefajat’s demand for enactment of a law imposing a ban on “free-mingling of men and women” is also against the constitution, noted the law ministry review report.
The Daily Star obtained a copy of the report yesterday.
“Freedom of individual and speech, and free-mingling of men and women are recognised in the constitution as fundamental rights,” the ministry said, adding that enactment of any law curtailing fundamental rights would be against Articles-7 and -26 of the constitution and would become void.
If such laws were enacted, hundreds of thousands of female workers would be unemployed, severely hampering national development, it said. Co-education in schools, colleges and universities would have to be dissolved, which would hamper women empowerment and would be against the spirit of the constitution, the ministry said.
It said there was no reason or scope to scrap the women development policy and education policy as the policies were formulated as per constitutional provisions and the mandate of the United Nations.
The women policy is not against Islam and the issue of religious education was included in the education policy, the ministry argued.
Referring to Articles-28, -41 and -44 of the constitution, the ministry said the constitution leaves no room to meet Hafajat’s demand for declaring “Qadiani” people non-Muslims.
On the Hefajat demand for stopping “anti-Islam activities of NGOs”, and conversions by Christian missionaries in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and elsewhere in the country, the law ministry referred to Article-41 of the constitution that gives freedom of preaching and practicing any religion.
It further clarified that hurting religious sentiments of others was punishable under existing laws.
On Hefajat’s demand to stop building sculptures at intersections, colleges and universities, the ministry said it was the constitutional duty of the state to prevent disfigurement, damage or removal of all monuments, objects, and places and objects of special artistic interest or of historical importance.
The country would be isolated in the international arena if Bangladesh, a partner of various UN conventions on cultural heritage and also Unesco activities, accepts Hefajat’s demand and stops setting up sculptures at intersections, colleges and universities.
On Hefajat demand to enact a law with a provision for capital punishment for maligning Allah, Islam and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and smear campaigns against Muslims, the law ministry said the existing law was adequate to ensure punishment for this offence.
Only one or two Muslim countries have such legal provisions.
About the demand for stopping all propaganda and “derogatory comments” about Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) by the “atheist leaders of the Shahbagh movement, bloggers and other anti-Islamists” and for arresting them and ensuring stern punishment, the law ministry noted that such offences could be well taken care of with existing laws.
About Hefajat’s claim of genocide and shooting and killing of Prophet-loving Islamic scholars, madrasa students, the law ministry made it clear that there was no incident of genocide.
About Hefajat demand for release of all arrested Islamic scholars and madrasa students, the ministry said those arrested during recent violence were not Islam-loving people rather the law enforcers held them on specific allegations of breaking the law.
On the question of misrepresentation of Islamic culture in the media, the law ministry observed that it was a punishable offence under existing laws if any religious sentiments were deliberate misrepresented in cinemas and plays.
About Hefajat’s demand for removing obstacles to holding religious programmes at the national mosque, the law ministry noted that certain disciplinary measures were taken against the backdrop of recent “unpleasant” incidents at Baitul Mukarram mosque.
On the demand for stopping Qawmi madrasa students and teachers from being “intimidated” and the “conspiracy against them”, law ministry found no specific allegation in this regard and the government did not receive any such allegations.
Read original post here: Bangladesh: Govt does its homework
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