Saudi scholar slams netizen for using Imran Khan's picture to ask a question on Shirk

Acclaimed religious scholar Sheikh Assim Al Hakeem slammed a social media user for using an old picture of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan at a shrine to ask a question on Shirk (polytheistic beliefs).

Assim Al Hakeem strongly reacted to the ‘X’ user's post, which accompanied a photo of Imran Khan bowing at a shrine, and questioned whether this practice constitutes shirk in Islam.

“You could have asked the question without attaching any photo to it,” said the scholar, who actively engages with his followers on social media to respond to their queries.

x.com

You could have asked the question without attaching any photo to it!

When one sees such a photo which is about 8 years old, one knows that the motive behind such a question is political and not religious as it is obvious that you are not asking to inquire about the Islamic… https://t.co/LPaYqoDVjz

— Assim Alhakeem (@Assimalhakeem) May 24, 2024

Without explicitly mentioning Imran Khan, the Saudi cleric criticised the use of someone’s personal photo to frame a question about religious practice.

"When one sees such a photo which is about 8 years old, one knows that the motive behind such a question is political and not religious as it is obvious that you are not asking to inquire about the Islamic ruling but rather to make a cheap political statement using whatever dirty means possible," he said in a strongly-worded post. 

Addressing the user, the scholar added that blinded by political hatred, he did not even care about his country's image.

“You should fear Allah and when you hate someone, fight like a man and not use such dirty cheap tactics, trying to use Islam and religious rulings to support your party when you yourself most likely don’t even know the basics of Islam nor care about Islam or even the county,” he concluded.