President Asif Ali Zardari expressed concerns that the proposed Madrassa Bill, if enacted, could result in seminaries being registered under the Societies Act, potentially inviting sanctions from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and affecting Pakistan’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) status.
Sources revealed on Friday that the president had raised eight objections to the Societies Registration (Amendment) Bill 2024, which mandates the registration of madrassas. He returned the bill earlier this month, citing risks to Pakistan’s international reputation, internal stability, and law and order.
Zardari argued that the bill’s provisions might exacerbate sectarianism, weaken legal oversight, and contradict existing legislation, such as the Madrassa Education Board Ordinance 2001 and the Islamabad Capital Territory Trust Act 2020. He also pointed out inconsistencies in the definition of madrassas within the bill and its incompatibility with the preamble of the original Societies Registration Act 1860.
The president warned that registering seminaries under the Societies Act could lead to misuse for non-educational purposes, fueling international criticism and potentially impacting FATF and other global assessments of Pakistan. He urged lawmakers to consider international implications when drafting laws on madrassas.
Meanwhile, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) criticized Zardari for not adhering to constitutional procedures while raising objections. JUI-F spokesperson Aslam Ghori accused the president of acting under external pressure and exceeding his constitutional authority by raising objections a second time. Ghori added that the objections were initially addressed but were not properly referred to the speaker, as required by procedure.
