JUI Leader Hafiz Hamdullah Sparks Controversy With Remarks on Underage Marriage

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) leader Hafiz Hamdullah has stirred controversy after stating that he has no intention of a second marriage, but if angered and forced to break the law, he would marry a 16-year-old girl.
Speaking to media outside the Parliament House in Islamabad, Hafiz Hamdullah said he would advise JUI chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to arrange collective marriages across all four provinces after returning from his foreign tour.
He said that collective marriages should be organized for young people who have reached puberty and are under the age of 18. Hafiz Hamdullah asserted that laws which contradict the Quran and Sunnah would not be accepted, claiming that Pakistan is an Islamic republic and such laws would be “trampled.”
He further stated that the Constitution clearly prohibits legislation that goes against the Quran and Sunnah. The JUI leader added that those who, in his view, had rebelled against the Constitution while sitting in parliament should face action under Article 6, while insisting that Maulana Fazlur Rehman was acting strictly in accordance with the Constitution.
Reiterating his earlier remarks, Hafiz Hamdullah said that although he was not inclined toward a second marriage at present, he would marry a 16-year-old girl if he lost his temper and chose to defy the law.