KARACHI: Chairman Businessmen Group in Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) M. Zubair Motiwala and President KCCI Muhammad Idrees have appreciated Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif for taking interest in the implementation of Federal Shariah Court’s decision of introducing riba-free banking in the country.
In a statement on Friday, they requested the government to introduce interest-free banking in Pakistan according to the Islamic principles and implement the court’s decision in true letter and spirit.
The Federal Shariah Court gave a verdict on 28 April 2022 after a lapse of 19 years. In the judgment, it declared that riba was prohibited according to the injunctions of Islam so it should be eliminated from the country within a period of five years.
The KCCI’s statement was issued in response to an appeal filed by the State Bank of Pakistan and four other banks before Supreme Court of Pakistan for review of the Shariah Court’s Judgment. They termed the appeal as a move to delay the conversion of conventional banking system to riba-free mode to banking.
They also appreciated the assurance given by the prime minister to influence the banks to withdraw their appeals from the Supreme Court so that the Shariah Court’s decision could be implemented as per schedule.
Chairman BMG Zubair Motiwala said, “Other Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Malaysia have made significant headway in implementing Islamic mode of financing in their respective counties.”
Malaysia had an Islamic Financial Services Board which had set standards, guiding principles and technical notes for the Islamic financial services industry, he added.
President KCCI stressed that all stakeholder groups should be consulted and every genuine issue should be resolved on a fast-track basis to pave way for timely implementation of Islamic Financial System in the country.
