Fatwa based killings

Fatwa has now become an ugly word, as it is associated with the recent extreme level of cruelty causing the death of a young girl, coming from a needy family. The excesses being carried out in the name of 'Fatwa' pronounced by illiterate persons, whose knowledge of Islamic theology and philosophy is often extremely scanty, needs to be stopped. The humane saying, "To forgive is divine," has its roots in Islamic philosophy. In contrast, what we see in real life is "cruelty thy name is Fatwa," as we learn from many news reports being published in the dailies, usually coming from rural areas almost every day. It seems to be practiced mostly by illiterate 'village elders,' who carry out cruelties by caning, often of under aged children. On many occasions, its extreme limit comes to killing or murder also, like what has happened recently. This illegal activity, leading to dispensing unwarranted punishment, often disproportionate to the crime, and usually directed against poor and needy people needs to be stopped with a strong hand by the government. Any one practicing 'Fatwa' needs to be taken to task for such pronouncements that involves physical punishment, which seems to be an uncivilised approach to crime and punishment. A citizen Dhaka