Politicisation of Religion in Pakistan: A Case Study on Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA)

Authors

  • Rafi Raza Sanghro The University of Northampton, England

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7596/taksad.v9i4.2404

Keywords:

Religion, Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA), Politicisation, Governments of Pakistan.

Abstract

Pakistan was created in the name of religion (Islam) as an independent country in 1947 on the basis of Two Nation Theory wherein the Muslims of Indian subcontinent could live, preach and profess their religion freely from the dominance of Hindus. After independence the state elites did not make any tangible programmes which could establish the country as an Islamic state. However, the state elites established religious ministry after 27 years of the establishment of Pakistan. The ministry was not established to implement or enforce religious programmes for Pakistan. Contrary it was established to control religious elites and their institutions which could be used for political gain. This paper is designed to illustrate the historical aspect of role of religion in Pakistan. The paper further will analyse how state elites used religion for political gains by politicising religion in Pakistan.

Author Biography

Rafi Raza Sanghro, The University of Northampton, England

Asst. Prof. Pakistan Studies, Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur, Sindh Pakistan

PhD Scholar at University of Northampton, UK.

References

Balabanlilar, L. (2009). The Emperor Jahangir and the Pursuit of Pleasure. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 19(2), 173-86.

Bhurgri, A. G. (2002). Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Falcon of Pakistan. Szabist.

Binder, L. (1961). Religion and Politics in Pakistan. Los Angeles: University of California Press.

Burki, S. J., Baxter, C., LaPorte, R., & Azfar, K. (1991). Pakistan under the Military: Eleven Years of Zia Ul-Haq. Westview Press.

Cheema, M. H., & Mustafa, A. (2008). From the Hudood Ordinances to the Protection of Women Act: Islamic Critiques of the Hudood Laws of Pakistan’. UCLA J. Islamic & Near EL, 8(1).

Choudhary, M. A. (1967). The Emergence of Pakistan. New York: Columbia University Press.

DAWN. (1977). Zia Dies in Plan Crash. DAWN, 5 July 1977. https://www.dawn.com/news/1278135.

Haq, F., & Jackson, J. (2009). Spiritual Journey to Hajj: Australian and Pakistani Experience and Expectations. Journal of Management, Spirituality and Religion, 6(2), 141-56.

Hasan, K. et al. (1962). The New Constitution of Pakistan. Parliamentary Affairs, 16(2), 174-78.

Imran, R. (2005). Legal Injustices: The Zina Hudood Ordinance of Pakistan and Its Implications for Women. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 7(2), 78-100.

Jha, R. (2018). Islamic Invasion and Occupation of India. In Facets of India’s Economy and Her Society Volume I, 107–23. Springer.

Jones, O. B. (2003). Pakistan: Eye of the Storm. Yale University Press.

Kennedy, C. H. (1992). Repugnancy to Islam--Who Decides? Islam and Legal Reform in Pakistan. International & Comparative Law Quarterly, 41(4), 769-87.

Lal, K. S. (1984). Early Muslims in India. Books & Books.

Maluka, Z. K. (1995). The Myth of Constitutionalism in Pakistan. Karachi: Oxford University Press.

Matinuddin, K. (1994). Tragedy of Errors: East Pakistan Crisis, 1968-1971. Wajidalis.

Mukherjee, K. (2010). Islamic Revivalism and Politics in Contemporary Pakistan. Journal of Developing Societies, 26(3), 329-53. https://doi.org/10.1177/0169796X1002600303.

Ministry of Religious Affairs website available online: http://mora.gov.pk/.

Nasr, V. R. (2000). International Politics, Domestic Imperatives, and Identity Mobilization: Sectarianism in Pakistan, 1979-1998. Comparative Politics, 171-90.

National Assembly of Pakistan. (2010). The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan. http://www.na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1333523681_951.pdf.

Rahman, F. (1973). Islam and the New Constitution of Pakistan. Journal of Asian and African Studies, 8(3), 190.

Raza, R. (1997). Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Pakistan, 1967-1977. Oxford University Press.

Shah, S. M. H. (1996). Religion and Politics in Pakistan: 1972-88. Vol. 3. Quaid-i-Azam Chair, National Institute of Pakistan Studies, Quaid-i-Azam University.

Sharan, P. (1968). Islamic State and Pakistan. The Indian Journal of Political Science, 29(2), 127-34.

Syed, J. (2011). Akbar’s Multiculturalism: Lessons for Diversity Management in the 21st Century. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences/Revue Canadienne Des Sciences de l’Administration, 28(4), 402-12.

Wolpert, S. (2018). Zulfi Bhutto of Pakistan: His Life & Times. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Yilmaz, S. (2013). State, Politics, and Religion: Effects of Political and Social Change on the Relationship between State and Religion in Turkey, 2002-2012. Dissertation in Sociology. University of Pittsburgh.

Downloads

Published

2020-12-24

How to Cite

Sanghro, R. R. (2020). Politicisation of Religion in Pakistan: A Case Study on Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA). Journal of History Culture and Art Research, 9(4), 164-175. https://doi.org/10.7596/taksad.v9i4.2404