Why should everything be reduced to the binary of Halal and Haram? It’s pop Islam—faux piety, driven by pseudo-Islamic power theology that seeks to paint the world in garish green.
A day before he was to be sentenced for anti-Islamic activities, Momika was killed in his apartment in Sweden by assailants who entered his room while he was live-streaming on TikTok.
Denmark and Sweden have seen a string of protests in recent weeks where copies of the Quran have been burned, or otherwise damaged, prompting outrage in Muslim countries.
The fundamental distinguishing feature of an Islamic bank is its adherence to Sharia. No interest or investment in businesses that are deemed unlawful by Islam.
Thursday's demonstration was called by supporters of Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to protest against the second planned Koran burning in Sweden in weeks.
The resolution was strongly opposed by the United States and the European Union, who say it conflicts with their view on human rights and freedom of expression.
The Organisation of the Islamic Conference have periodically lobbied for blasphemy to be made a global offence. But they have been soft on violations of human rights in Sharia law.
UCBs accounted for 1.8% of total industry credit in September 2025—down from 2.2% five yrs ago—showing that they are losing ground to faster PSU banks.
This is the game every nation is now learning to play. Some are finding new allies or seeing value among nations where they’d seen marginal interest. The starkest example is India & Europe.
Dear Prof. Shariq Nisar, you are one of the architects of the Islamic Finance. It is quite flattering for this scribe that you took notice of this article, and felt compelled to leave your thoughtful comments.
This article only tangentially mentions Islamic Finance. However, I must add that the main subject of this article, the Halal certification industry, is an offshoot of the ideology which is also the inspiration behind Islamic Economy, Islamic Banking, and Islamic Finance, etc.
Islamic economy is a matter of belief — a subset of the new imagination of Islam. It’s not about economics and finance, rather it’s about the political agenda which can no longer be pursued openly.
To say that the mainstream banking and financial system have caused untold miseries, which can only be alleviated by an Islamic system is, again, a matter of belief — a belief that everything will become blissfully perfect once the Islamic system is in place. We know what is the prerequisite for it — the Islamic state! It’s a part of the same set beliefs in which a woman who doesn’t wrap Hijab around her head is both unsafe and unchaste, and those who don’t follow Islam are deprived of mental peace.
You rightly mentioned the unregulated finance and Ponzi schemes which defraud the investors. So, you are also aware of the fact that a disproportionate number of them have been “Islamic” and have preyed on the religious credulity of the Muslims. All they need to do is to prefix their company’s name with Al (al) and Halal.
You say, “For those who seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations, we actively support the development of such offerings. Several ethical funds have been introduced by mainstream fund managers to cater to these preferences, with both major stock exchanges facilitating their growth. These products have also received approval from financial regulators, ensuring transparency and investor protection.” That’s fine, but may I know whether the urge to “seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations” is natural or ideologically produced? To an outside observer, the whole thing would look contrived. There’s nothing organic about it. More importantly, the entire enterprise is not even about economy and finance. It’s about Islam. A square peg is being hammered into a round hole. The purpose is to Islamise the world, the polity, the knowledge and the economy. It’s supremacism.
We have discussed whether it’s even right to equate the ethical with the religious, and to further limit the meaning of the word ethical to the Islamic. Wouldn’t it be more transparent to use the descriptive Islamic instead of the adjective ethical? Those who have had a brush with Islamic finance would be reluctant to use ethical for it.
To conclude, Islamic finance or Halal products are not about business, commerce and economy. They are more about religion, ideology and politics.
What a lucid exposition of the concept of Haram and Halal as it exists in Islam and its relevance in a world that would have been inconceivable all those centuries ago! Mr. Ibn Khaldun Bharti’s scorching critique of the way the role of this concept is being expanded to literally everything under the sun couldn’t have been more timely. I am a great fan of Mr. Bharti. I learn so much from his penetrating interventions in these combustible yet profound subjects.
The author of this article is a dear friend, and I respect him. He has his reasons for writing what he has, just as the publisher has the reason to publish content that aligns with their interests. However, I will focus solely on the statement related to finance that is my field.
Having spent over two decades in the Indian finance industry, I have always worked toward creating opportunities for people to participate in mainstream finance. This not only provides financial security but also protects consumers from unscrupulous operators. Millions of individuals lose their savings to Ponzi schemes regularly, and one of the most effective ways to prevent such exploitation is by encouraging people to only engage with regulated financial institutions.
For those who seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations, we actively support the development of such offerings. Several ethical funds have been introduced by mainstream fund managers to cater to these preferences, with both major stock exchanges facilitating their growth. These products have also received approval from financial regulators, ensuring transparency and investor protection.
All key stakeholders—investors, market participants, and regulators—have supported the development of these financial instruments. Furthermore, like any other financial product, regulators have imposed cost limits, ensuring that the burden falls on market players rather than consumers.
Unfortunately, the author has chosen to coverup these developments, as they do not align with the narrative he seeks to construct. It appears that the editor, whether intentionally or otherwise, has also overlooked these aspects—a classic case of what we in finance refer to as benign overlook.
Of course halal applies to food and livelihood. But the fact is BJP is trying to ban that and at the same time reaping benefits from halal beef export. ?. It doesn’t have problem with cow urine being sold in bottles like carbonated drinks but problem with halal foods?
everybody know very well the tacktics being used by bjp and its allies in bringing muslims and their culture along with their value… most of them are fake allegations and many at times, created by these hidden bjp and allies folks themselves only to spread fake news… if Muslims in India were to use halal in such a way, then why is it coming only now? why wasn’t it b4? was there any halal word earlier on any of the iron rods or wires or any other thing? only on food and most of the times on food items that are to be exported… so this clearly means the solicitor general is one among these thugs spreading fear and false narrations… jhoot bolo, firse jhoot bolo, itna jhoot bolo ke log jhoot to such samajhne lagey! and this is happening.. as well, as we’ve seen and grew up seeing so many names being put as labels on iron rods, bricks and other non food items, what is wrong in labelling them as halal? if one community does, then others too would do it.. and no blame for it..
Only edible packaged product, or fresh, chilled and frozen meats can be labelled Halal when they are devoid of pig fat and are slaughtered the Islamic way – no steel, cement, wooden product needs a Halal certificate – this is clearly a false premise and anti Halal propaganda. Halal certification of edible products is welcome as they are fit to be consumed by all human beings.
Halal should be “haram” for Dharmics
Dear Prof. Shariq Nisar, you are one of the architects of the Islamic Finance. It is quite flattering for this scribe that you took notice of this article, and felt compelled to leave your thoughtful comments.
This article only tangentially mentions Islamic Finance. However, I must add that the main subject of this article, the Halal certification industry, is an offshoot of the ideology which is also the inspiration behind Islamic Economy, Islamic Banking, and Islamic Finance, etc.
Islamic economy is a matter of belief — a subset of the new imagination of Islam. It’s not about economics and finance, rather it’s about the political agenda which can no longer be pursued openly.
To say that the mainstream banking and financial system have caused untold miseries, which can only be alleviated by an Islamic system is, again, a matter of belief — a belief that everything will become blissfully perfect once the Islamic system is in place. We know what is the prerequisite for it — the Islamic state! It’s a part of the same set beliefs in which a woman who doesn’t wrap Hijab around her head is both unsafe and unchaste, and those who don’t follow Islam are deprived of mental peace.
You rightly mentioned the unregulated finance and Ponzi schemes which defraud the investors. So, you are also aware of the fact that a disproportionate number of them have been “Islamic” and have preyed on the religious credulity of the Muslims. All they need to do is to prefix their company’s name with Al (al) and Halal.
You say, “For those who seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations, we actively support the development of such offerings. Several ethical funds have been introduced by mainstream fund managers to cater to these preferences, with both major stock exchanges facilitating their growth. These products have also received approval from financial regulators, ensuring transparency and investor protection.” That’s fine, but may I know whether the urge to “seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations” is natural or ideologically produced? To an outside observer, the whole thing would look contrived. There’s nothing organic about it. More importantly, the entire enterprise is not even about economy and finance. It’s about Islam. A square peg is being hammered into a round hole. The purpose is to Islamise the world, the polity, the knowledge and the economy. It’s supremacism.
We have discussed whether it’s even right to equate the ethical with the religious, and to further limit the meaning of the word ethical to the Islamic. Wouldn’t it be more transparent to use the descriptive Islamic instead of the adjective ethical? Those who have had a brush with Islamic finance would be reluctant to use ethical for it.
To conclude, Islamic finance or Halal products are not about business, commerce and economy. They are more about religion, ideology and politics.
What a lucid exposition of the concept of Haram and Halal as it exists in Islam and its relevance in a world that would have been inconceivable all those centuries ago! Mr. Ibn Khaldun Bharti’s scorching critique of the way the role of this concept is being expanded to literally everything under the sun couldn’t have been more timely. I am a great fan of Mr. Bharti. I learn so much from his penetrating interventions in these combustible yet profound subjects.
The author of this article is a dear friend, and I respect him. He has his reasons for writing what he has, just as the publisher has the reason to publish content that aligns with their interests. However, I will focus solely on the statement related to finance that is my field.
Having spent over two decades in the Indian finance industry, I have always worked toward creating opportunities for people to participate in mainstream finance. This not only provides financial security but also protects consumers from unscrupulous operators. Millions of individuals lose their savings to Ponzi schemes regularly, and one of the most effective ways to prevent such exploitation is by encouraging people to only engage with regulated financial institutions.
For those who seek financial products aligned with their ethical, social, or religious considerations, we actively support the development of such offerings. Several ethical funds have been introduced by mainstream fund managers to cater to these preferences, with both major stock exchanges facilitating their growth. These products have also received approval from financial regulators, ensuring transparency and investor protection.
All key stakeholders—investors, market participants, and regulators—have supported the development of these financial instruments. Furthermore, like any other financial product, regulators have imposed cost limits, ensuring that the burden falls on market players rather than consumers.
Unfortunately, the author has chosen to coverup these developments, as they do not align with the narrative he seeks to construct. It appears that the editor, whether intentionally or otherwise, has also overlooked these aspects—a classic case of what we in finance refer to as benign overlook.
This is not new things
Of course halal applies to food and livelihood. But the fact is BJP is trying to ban that and at the same time reaping benefits from halal beef export. ?. It doesn’t have problem with cow urine being sold in bottles like carbonated drinks but problem with halal foods?
everybody know very well the tacktics being used by bjp and its allies in bringing muslims and their culture along with their value… most of them are fake allegations and many at times, created by these hidden bjp and allies folks themselves only to spread fake news… if Muslims in India were to use halal in such a way, then why is it coming only now? why wasn’t it b4? was there any halal word earlier on any of the iron rods or wires or any other thing? only on food and most of the times on food items that are to be exported… so this clearly means the solicitor general is one among these thugs spreading fear and false narrations… jhoot bolo, firse jhoot bolo, itna jhoot bolo ke log jhoot to such samajhne lagey! and this is happening.. as well, as we’ve seen and grew up seeing so many names being put as labels on iron rods, bricks and other non food items, what is wrong in labelling them as halal? if one community does, then others too would do it.. and no blame for it..
Only edible packaged product, or fresh, chilled and frozen meats can be labelled Halal when they are devoid of pig fat and are slaughtered the Islamic way – no steel, cement, wooden product needs a Halal certificate – this is clearly a false premise and anti Halal propaganda. Halal certification of edible products is welcome as they are fit to be consumed by all human beings.