Sunni groups oppose Jamat’s zakat call

A recent charity (zakat) drive conducted by the Jamat-e-Islami was vehemently opposed by different Sunni sections claiming that collective zakat moves were not permissible in Islamic Shariat.

While the Jamat is going ahead silently with its zakat collection, Sunni scholars, irrespective of affiliations, are opposing it. Although the Jamat and Mujahid groups have been collecting zakat funds and distributing them to the needy for years, there was not so much opposition to it from traditional Sunnis.

But what triggered the fiercest Sunni opposition this time is the Jamat attempt to reach out to the Muslim community at large with the call for donation to the zakat fund.

Sunni scholars have accused Jamat leaders of cheating the community by persuading it to donate to the zakat fund. Sunni scholars claimed that giving zakat, which is a mandatory act of charity that requires Muslims to give a certain portion of their wealth to the poor and the needy, to an organisation like the Jamat did not fulfil the intended purpose of directly supporting the poor and the needy.