Juvenile Justice System in Pakistan: An Islamic Perspective “O you who believe! Stand out firmly for justice...”1

Abstract

This paper attempts to discuss the Islamic conception of Juvenile Justice and cites the references from Qur’ān and Sunnah, which are the basic and arch sources of Islamic Jurisprudence and law. Islam focuses upon compassion and mercy while dealing with the children in the justice system, albeit, Juvenile Justice is considered to be a modern concept in the contemporary legal theory,but Islam deliberateson such punishments for the juveniles, which are not commensurate with the nature of offence, that is what modern day justice system for juveniles emphasizes. Moreover, Islam also focuses on reformation, rehabilitation and social re-integration of the children into the society, which are considered as the modern day concepts in the juvenile justice lexicon, notwithstanding, some of the
concepts transpired from Islamic laws, inter alia, the issue of juvenility appears to be in derogation with the modern day Juvenile Justice conception. Pakistan, being an Islamic Republic, follows the Islamic laws, which override all other laws. All laws passed by the parliament are reviewed in terms of Islamic injunctions and any law in conflict with the Islamic provisions is discardedab initio but still legal regime dealing juveniles is inconsistent to provide uniformity, which culminates in ambiguity. Some special trepidations upon which the whole edifice of Juvenile Justice System anchors have been discussed in this paper with special reference to Pakistan& Islam. Its findings aim to assist policy and law makers to establish practicable strategies, translating Juvenile Justice System ‘on paper’ to ‘in practice’. For conduct of research doctrinal method has been employed with analytical and comparative approach