Indian constitution not against Sharia laws: AK Khan

Hyderabad: AK Khan, Advisor to Telangana Government, has said that the Indian constitution is not against Sharia laws.

Addressing the ‘Empowering Young Global Citizens’ (EYGC) Conference here on Thursday, Mr. Khan said most people, unfortunately, were not aware about the provisions in the Indian constitution and the Sharia laws as well. Everyone was free to follow his or her religion and faith, but they should also understand the culture and faith of other religions. This would help in making the society a better place to live, he said.

The EYGC conference was aimed at empowering Muslim youth to recognize and reject extremist ideology whilst developing skills to promote positive change. The project was supported as part of the bilateral programmes of the British Deputy High Commission, Hyderabad. As many as 150 students and 20 faculty members from different educational institutions in the city attended a workshop during September and October held as a prelude to the conference to distinguish legitimate civic and political activism from extremist views in the better interest of their



community.

Complementing the organisers, Mr. Khan said similar workshops would be conducted in the Telangana Minority Residential Education Institutes Society schools from the next academic year. Andrew McAllister, British Deputy High Commissioner, Hyderabad, said during the course of the programme, participants were made to discuss and share their views on inter-faith practices and cultures.

“We all have our own faith and practices and that is what defines our identity,” said Mr. McAllister.

Extremists use social media as a tool to abuse, infuse anger and propagate their ideas and the youth are susceptible to such practices. The need of the hour is to overcome these practices through positive energy and by conducting such workshops, he said.

Nusrath Fatima, a student of MS Education Academy believed no religion bars girls from quality education and she is now preparing to conduct training and education programmes for the poor and economically backward students. Fatima said she is also spreading awareness among her family and relatives on the importance of girls’ education, especially in the Muslim community.