In this essay “The Role of Islam in Pakistani Politics”, I will begin with distinguishing between the two schools of thought which are at the forefront of Pakistani politics. These would be the Modernists and the traditional Islamists and their viewpoints. Further, I will identify different measures taken by the leaders of the Pakistani State, such as Ayub Khan and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto to secularize the country, their motives behind their actions and the reasons leading to their respective failures. In my conclusion, with the help of my arguments, I will evaluate the fact that whether Pakistan is on route towards a secular state or a further Islamized one in the twenty first century.

With the arrival of the modern era major religions with huge followings have witnessed an emergent reformist group. This faction of individuals also branded as modernists comprise of intellectuals and philosophers who have a dissimilar approach to religion when compared to their ancestors. Although their fundamental codes of reference and direction (Koran, Sunna

Ayub Khan also attempted to change the Marriage Family laws of Pakistan. This topic gave birth to one of the most heated debates between the Modernists and the traditionalists in the Khan era. Since Islam emphasizes greatly and revolves around the structure of family, the religious traditionalists were against the imposition of the reformed Family and Marriage law. They advocated their cause by stating that the previous law was based on the sharia and therefore did not require any change. The family laws provided women greater rights, which curbed the freedom with which men could divorce their wives. ‘These laws gave married women certain rights which acted as a restraint on male freedom to divorce at will and or acquire more than one wife, the conservative classes considered them an assault on the Islamic structure’. Traditionalists such as Maw Lana Ihstisham-Ul-Haq dismissed the legislative changes of the modernists by stating that they are trying to insult and ridicule Islamic law. Ayub Khan and the Modernists countered the traditionalist argument by stating that Islam has never provided any individual with any status to interpret the Koran. In fact any individual who has the knowledge can interpret the Koran. Thus with growing socio-economic and political changes the instructions put forward by the Koran on family relations could be interpreted in a different and varied fashion. The law was finally put into practice but it had been altered on all fronts to accommodate the traditionalist demands. Despite his efforts to change the state of Pakistani politics Ayub Khan found that he was met with opposition on every side. Later he was deserted by his Modernists counterparts and found he was alone in the fight.

‘Ayub tried to move the people toward the modern age, he found every route blocked not only by the fundamentalists but even by the so-called modernists who tentatively sneak out of their conventional habitat, survey the ground and then withdraw into their shells at the first sign of opposition. In the end Ayub was left with no supporter or intermediary.’

In addition to the aura of insecurity that surrounded Bhutto’s rule, he also had to tackle other issues, which prevented him from pursuing a modernist path for Pakistan. The national unity of Pakistan was questioned with the break up of East Pakistan, into an independent Bangladesh in 1971. As a result Bhutto and his counter parts deemed it necessary to use the Islamic banner to reunite the masses.

The constitution on 1962 in essence was similar to the constitution formulated in 1956 but it held some vital alterations. Firstly the constitution erased the word ‘Islamic’ form the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The Pakistani State was coined as a republic and the word Islamic was temporarily erased. After some argument and agitation from the traditionalists the name was once again changed to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This was a clear sign to Ayub Kahn that all his efforts to make Pakistan into completely a secular state would be met with tough opposition. The 1962 constitution also directed an establishment of an Advisory Council of Islamic ideology and a Central institute of Islamic Research. The primary duty and function of the Advisory Council was to make recommendations to the government regarding ways in which Muslims residing within the country to lead their lives in accordance to the Islamic way of life. Another duty of the Advisory council was to advise the government if any new law was antagonistic to the Islamic law. The Central Institute of Research Council was assigned to evaluate the essential of Islam with a modernist viewpoint. ‘Its charter reflected a modernistic approach, emphasizing its role as defining Islamic fundamentals in a rational and liberal manner’. The interconnection between the Advisory council and the Research institute was that the advisory council could ask the Research Institute to provide them with resea

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