میجارٹی ایکٹ کیس میں وفاقی شرعی عدالت کے موقف کا تجزیاتی مطالعہ

AN ANALYTICAL STUDY OF THE FEDERAL SHARIAT COURT'S STANCE IN THE MAJORITY ACT CASE

Abstract

A clear distinction exists b/w the legal age of majority and the Shariah stance on puberty in Pakistan. According to Shariah texts, the primary and fundamental basis for determining puberty is physical signs. Whereas, according to the Majority Act 1875, Pakistani law sets the age of puberty at 16 years for girls and 18 years for boys. Sharia law would specifically determine the age of puberty if the physical signs of puberty are not evident in a boy or girl.

A petition was filed in the Federal Shariah Court to declare Section 3 of the Majority Act 1875 as repugnant to the Quran and Sunnah. The court dismissed the petition, upholding Section 3 of the Majority Act as Shariah-compliant and asserting that there is no text in the Quran and Sunnah that prohibits the determination of a specific age for puberty. Generally, in the judgments of Shariah petitions, the court has consistently clarified that its constitutional mandate is to examine laws in the light of the texts of the Quran and Sunnah, rather than the opinions of jurists. However, in this case, the court dismissed the petition while disregarding the texts of the Quran and Sunnah.This paper will discuss the contradictions between the Majority Act's provisions and the court's disregard for its constitutional mandate.