Jamaat-e-Islami: Encyclopedia II - Jamaat-e-Islami - Branches

Jamaat-e-Islami - Branches

Jamaat-e-Islami - Student Wing

The Jamaat's student wing is known as the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, also known as the Jamiat (pronounced "juh-mee-at") or 'IJT.' The Jamiat is known for its heavy handed approach - bordering on terrorism - and for terrorising the groups with opposing views. Use of excessive force by Jamiat in educational institutes has actually fuelled anti-Jamiat feelings resulting in creation of parties like MQM and its associated student wing. These in turn considerably reduced Jamiat’s influence in places like Karachi and Hyderabad. In the 1960s and the 1970s it was successfully challenged by Pakistan's two main left-wing student parties, National Students Federation and Democratic Students Federation. It lost most student body elections against these two parties, but gained ground after the arrival of General Mohammad Zia ul-Haq's right-wing dictatorship in 1977. However, ever since the late 1980s, the IJT has lost a lot of support and power especially in the face of the rise of Mohajir Quami Movement's student wing, the All Pakistan Mohajir Students Federation in Karachi and Muslim Students Federation and People's Students Federation elsewhere in the country. The Jamiat also has a wing/counterpart for female students called the Islami Jamiat-e-Taalibaat.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Branches", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki