SAMAA Digital reported that the in the fatwa, the clerics working in the seminary claimed that dramas such as Ertugrul were part of a conspiracy against Islam.
“Portraying Islam and Islamic personalities or their deeds through dramas or films is tantamount to insulting the dignity of these personalities themselves because the possibility of misrepresentation is huge. Hence calling it an Islamic drama or considering it as a service to Islam by playing the role of high profile personalities in the form of dramas is not right,” the fatwa claimed.
It further added that in such dramas “they attribute their own costumes, dress and speech, which is not, in fact, a service to Islam but part of a conspiracy against Islam, so making, watching and showing such films is a sin”. The fatwa advised all Muslims to stay away and avoid such dramas.
In April, Jamia Binnori, another Karachi-based Islamic institute, had released a fatwa against Ertugrul. Allama Muhammad Yusuf, a senior preacher at the institute said that the drama should be forbidden according to the ‘shariah law’.
The government of Pakistan had announced that Ertugrul will be broadcast on state television from the beginning of Ramzan. Earlier this year, Prime Minister Imran Khan has recommended the drama to the youth of the country, saying that they will learn ‘Islamic culture’ from the Turkish drama series.