Pakistan achieved independence from the Crown in 1947 and at the same time was partitioned from India. The legal system in Pakistan is based on English common law; pre- and post- Independence/Partition Statutes; and Islamic law.
The Constitution of Pakistan provides that all laws be brought into consonance with the Qur’an and sunnah (the practice of the Prophet Muhammad). The Federal Shariat Court and the Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court have a remit to examine any law that may be repugnant to the “injunctions of Islam, as laid down in the Qur’an and the sunnah.” The process of ‘Islamisation’ has been relatively steady in recent decades and has widespread, although not universal, popular support.
The impact of the process of Islamisation is that there can sometimes be some doubt as to what the law is in relation to any particular question. Where traditional ‘shari’a’ law is in conflict with statutory provisions, there can be a contest as to which set of rules prevails.
As referred to above there can also be a contest within the shari’a between different schools of law as to which principles will apply. The Hanafi school has traditionally been adhered to in Pakistan, however during the process of Islamisation, principles have been derived from all schools of law.
Andrew Allen QC 