Sunni Ittehad Council
Sunni Ittehad Council سنی اتحاد کونسل | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | SIC |
| Chairman | Sahibzada Hamid Raza |
| Founder | Muhammad Fazal Karim |
| Founded | 2009 |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Right-wing[1] |
| Religion | Sunni Islam (Barelvi) |
| National affiliation | Difa-e-Pakistan[2] Tehreek Tahafuz Ayin |
| Senate | 1 / 100 |
| National Assembly | 80 / 336 [3][4] |
| Balochistan Assembly | 1 / 65 |
| KPK Assembly | 68 / 145 |
| Sindh Assembly | 5 / 168 |
| Punjab Assembly | 103 / 371 |
| Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly | 0 / 33 |
| Azad Kashmir Assembly | 0 / 49 |
| Election symbol | |
Horse  | |
| Party flag | |
 | |
| Website | |
| https://twitter.com/_SICPak | |
The Sunni Ittehad Council (Ittehad in Urdu for "unity", from al-Ittihad in Arabic meaning "united" or "jointly") is a political alliance of Islamic political and Barelvi religious parties in Pakistan which represents followers of the school of Sunni Islam.[5]
SIC was formed in 2009 under the leadership of Sahibzada Fazal Karim, the then President of Markazi Jamiat Ulama-e-Pakistan and Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan. Sahibzada Fazal Karim was amongst the most distinguished political and religious figures of Islamic Republic of Pakistan and belonged to a highly reputable religious background. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (JUP) was founded by Mohammad Abdul Ghafoor Hazarvi.[6] Later, it broke into many factions.
Sahibzada Fazal Karim died in April 2013 and his eldest son Sahibzada Hamid Raza was elected as the chairman and he is still performing as the chairman of the party..
After the 2024 election, the winning independent candidates supported by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf joined this party at Imran Khan's behest and it emerged as the biggest party securing largest (92) numbers in the Parliament.
On 19 February 2024, PTI leader Gohar Ali Khan announced that its party-backed independent candidates in the 2024 general election would join Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) as part of their parliamentary strategy.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) submitted on 22 February the joining certificates of independent members aligning with the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). According to details provided by the PTI Secretariat, a total of 86 independent members have pledged allegiance to the Sunni Ittehad Council for the National Assembly. Simultaneously, certificates of 105 members of the SIC for the Punjab Assembly and 85 members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly have been submitted. Moreover, the joining certificates of 9 independent members of the Sindh Assembly have also been presented to the Election Commission, further solidifying the SIC's presence in key legislative bodies.
Ideology
As the Sunni Ittehad Council is an alliance of several religious parties, it follows right-wing politics, and advocates for the involvement of religion in politics. The party follows the Sunni denomination of Islam, and as Sunni parties do, the SIC preaches the teachings of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad to be implemented, mostly to the Pakistani government. Although the party follows the Barelvi and Sunni school of thought of Islam, it has joined hands with parties of other denominations of Islam, most recently with the Shia party, the Majlis Wahadat-e-Muslimeen, under mediation by the SIC’s ally, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.[7]
The party has also openly criticized both the Taliban and the American military involvement in Pakistan, while also heavily participating in anti-terrorism efforts.
Following the 2022–2023 political unrest in Pakistan, the Sunni Ittehad Council voiced support for Imran Khan and the PTI. The SIC is heavily involved in supporting Imran Khan especially after the 2024 Pakistani general election.
References
- ^ Dawn.com (19 February 2024). "PTI-backed independents to join Sunni Ittehad Council: Barrister Gohar". Dawn (newspaper). Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
- ^ "Sunni Ittehad Council to launch Difa-e-Pakistan drive". The News International (newspaper). 15 December 2011. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "National Assembly of Pakistan: Members". National Assembly of Pakistan. 20 October 2024. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "After Senate, constitutional amendment passed in NA with two-thirds majority". Aaj TV. 21 October 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
- ^ US aided Pakistan group which supported extremists Archived 4 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine Dawn (newspaper), Published 11 January 2012, Retrieved 11 December 2018
- ^ Khan, Aarish Ullah (2011). Sunni Ittehad Council: The Strengths and Limitations of Barelvi Activism Against Terrorism. Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ "Pakistan: Imran Khan's PTI-backed candidates to join Sunni Ittehad Council, vows to form govt". www.indiatvnews.com. India TV News. 19 February 2024. Archived from the original on 4 March 2024. Retrieved 4 March 2024.