Great need for Ijtihad to take on challenges ahead of Islam: Salman Khurshid

JAIPUR: Former central law minister, Salman Khurshid expressed the ‘great’ need for having Ijtihad (a process of making a legal decision based on the Quran and the Sunnah) in the contemporary Muslim societies to take on the challenges ahead of Islam.
While responding to a question on who will speak for Muslims and Indians during a session on ‘Islam: Multiple Histories’ at Jaipur Literature Festival on Sunday, Khurshid said, “The difficulty is who does the ijtihad and how it will be done.In India, we have All India Muslim Personal Law Board which is accepted by some while opposed by others. Another important body is Supreme Court which many believe is not equipped to deal with the core of Islam.”
He advised Muslims to look within for setting a narrative of peace and harmony to break the one propagated by the extremists. “Muslims have to accept leaders who are partly religious and partly social but not the priest. But, it cannot be done without an understanding of the subject,” said Khurshid, who talked about the role of Sufism which has traditions from the various Indian religions in binding the nation. Elaborating on why nobody can speak for Muslims, Khurshid said, “We had a bad experience with the founder of Pakistan Mohammed Ali Jinnah who was widely considered as the voice of Muslims despite being repeatedly repudiated and rejected.”
Equating Islam with other religions which have been evolving within the circles of its core beliefs, author Zulfikar Hijri argued, “The discovery of camera had made Muslims apprehensive of using it that it will violate Islam. However, over the years, taking pictures have become an accepted norm and nobody even discusses it in the light of religion.” Author, Rana Safvi talked about strengthening Sufism which was special to Indian Islam. “Sufis uphold the wisdom and values of Islam. The value system Sufis spread is timeless and relevant for all ages and is the essence of Islam,” said Safvi.