Politics and religion

Sameer Ahmad Khan Mojlish, Dhanmondi, Dhaka
Recently, our law minister said that by scrapping the Fifth Amendment in our constitution, religion-based parties will be banned from politics. Well, I am entirely against imposing an all-out ban on such parties. Islam is a religion that caters to all aspects of human life including political life. The political ideology preached by Islam is 'Caliphate'. Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) was not a mere prophet but was also the head of the first Islamic State (Medina) which he governed according to Sharia laws. After him, this legacy was carried forward by the four Caliphs. Those were the golden years for Muslims and no non-Muslim can say that it was a reign of terror for them. If some political parties believe in such ideology then it is illogical to ban them. Our constitution is a democratic one which gives every individual the right to preach and practice his/her religious as well as political beliefs independently. By banning religion-based parties, the very spirit of our constitution will be contravened since they will be deprived of preaching and practicing the political ideology they believe in. Such parties therefore shouldn't be banned and it is ultimately up to the general public to decide if they should be voted to power or not. I am against such political parties which use religion as a tool to hoodwink people and grab power but not to practice the teachings of Islam sincerely. I don't mind if the government bans parties which advocate establishment of an Islamic state by bombing people. Therefore, I urge the government to look into this matter seriously before banning any party solely for the political ideology it believes in.