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The Jamaat-e-Islami of Pakistan under the leadership of Sayyid Abul Ala Mawdudi (1903-1979) took an active part in the politics of Pakistan. Its primary objective is to reform the existing set-up of government and establish the Islamic system through constitutional means. In operational terms, the objective of the Jamaat is to participate in elections with all its concomitant campaigning and alliance formations to change the political leadership of the country. This, however, was not the Jamaat's objective at the time of its formation. In other words, the Jamaat strategy changed with the change in the environment. This study pinpoints various milestones in the transformation of the Jamaat-e-Islami from a quietist movement with the objective of Islamic revival to an active political party bent upon wresting power from "the leadership of the wayward and of those gone astray."1 It examines this organizational evolution by referring to the social and intellectual base of its leadership structure. It explores the value and validity of this transformation and assesses its impact upon the organization and the society as a whole. Rather than studying the impact of Islamization on politics, this study reverses the sequence and evaluates the consequences of "politicizing" an Islamic movement.
The Formative Phase
The Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistan was credited with "hav(ing) a well defined objective and work(ing) for it with single-mindedness of purpose and determination."2 That objective, as stated by Mawdudi, is Islam, which is a universal and comprehensive way of life. According to him, it is a well-ordered system, a consistent whole with set answers to all problems. Its fundamental postulate is tawhid, the unity and sovereignty of God. The scheme of life envisaged by Islam is known as Sbari'ah and is established on the bedrock of faith. It is on that foundation that the edifice of moral, social, political and economic systems are created. The ideal Islamic society, to Mawdudi, consists of people who, through putting their faith in Islam, would liberate themselves from all allegiances except to God; such a society would be free and "theodemocratic" and its citizens would be as equal as the teeth of a comb.
Muslims, according to Mawdudi, belong to the ummah wasatah (just and balanced community) and, as such, are duty bound to enjoin what is right...