What is the System of Khilāfat?
Political Issues
Question asked by .
Answered by Dr. Shehzad Saleem

It is argued by many religio-political leaders of most Muslim countries that Khilafāt is the name of political system envisaged by Islam? What exactly are the features of the Islamic Khilafāt?


In Arabic, the word ‘Khilafāt’ is synonymous with the English word ‘political system’ regardless of the fact that it is a political system of a Muslim country or a non-Muslim one. The word in itself holds no religious sanctity. Needless to say that Islam does not give a political system to its followers. It only gives certain principal guidelines in this matter. The task of formulating a system on the basis of these guidelines has been left to human intellect. Whatever system it evolves, giving due regard to these guidelines, can be called Khilāfat. Of course, it is not at all necessary to stick to this term for the political system of a Muslim country since it has no religious significance.

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