WEB DESK: The Ittehad Tanzeemat-e-Madaris Pakistan (ITMD), a federation of key madrassa oversight bodies, has called on the government to issue a gazette notification for the Societies Registration (Amendment) Act 2024.
The demand follows the bill’s final approval and its subsequent dispatch to the President’s House.
Addressing a press conference after a meeting of the ITMD supreme council on Monday, the leadership emphasised that the bill, which had received final approval, had passed the designated time for objections. Consequently, the objections raised by the presidency were deemed ineffective.
The controversy surrounding the bill intensified two days ago when President Asif Ali Zardari expressed concerns that if the madrassa bill becomes law, seminaries would be registered under the Societies Act, potentially triggering sanctions from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+), and other international bodies.
Despite the objections, the madrassa bill, which has already passed both houses of parliament, remains a point of contention between the government and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F). The bill’s enactment is part of an agreement between the government and the religio-political party for supporting the 26th Amendment.
Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, a key ITMD leader, declared that the bill has already become law. He explained, “The bill has acquired legal status because the president did not raise any objections within the ten-day window. The objections raised by the president were ineffective.”
Mufti Muneeb urged the government to immediately issue the gazette notification in line with the law.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman also weighed in, asserting that the bill is not controversial, as it has already been approved by parliament. He emphasised that the ITMD supreme council believes the government should endorse the resolution without delay.
