The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

www.emeraldinsight.com/1753-8394.htm

IMEFM
7,2

182

Shariah compliance in Islamic

banking
An empirical study on selected Islamic banks
in Bangladesh
Hafij Ullah
Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Business Studies,
International Islamic University Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the Shariah compliance status of the Islamic banks
in Bangladesh.
Design/methodology/approach The research was based on both primary and secondary
materials. The primary data were gathered through sample questionnaire survey and personal
interviews by the researcher; the secondary data were obtained from Quran, Hadiths, different
circulars/letters, manuals, research books and journals, annual reports, Web sites of the sample banks.
Statistical tools and techniques like weighted average, percentage, SD, variance and correlation
between Shariah violation score and bank-specific attributes were used applying statistical software
Statistical Package for Social Science (version 17.0).
Findings Shariah compliance status of the Islamic banks in Bangladesh is in a vulnerable condition,
Shariah compliance status highly varies among the Islamic banks, and Shariah violation is high in
investing activities because of lack of knowledge, lack of sincerity in complying Shariah, poor attention
in Shariah audit and Shariah research and lack of strong Shariah supervisory board comprising
full-time skillful members.
Practical implications Among others, the major policy implications of this study are as follows:
regulatory bodies and Shariah board members are expected to have guidelines from this study to find
their limitations and to determine their future responsibilities; executives and Employees are expected
to get the idea of present state of Shariah compliance and to identify their weaknesses in this regard;
clients and other stakeholders are expected to have guidelines to choose the better Islamic banks to
perform banking transactions; and the researchers in Islamic banking may usefully use the issues
raised in this article for more comprehensive studies in Islamic banking and Shariah compliance.
Originality/value The paper opens a new avenue in justifying the status of Shariah compliance
with a new dataset and correlating Shariah violation score with bank-specific attributes.
Keywords Bangladesh, Islamic banking, Shariah compliance, Shariah violation
Paper type Research paper

International Journal of Islamic and

Middle Eastern Finance and
Management
Vol. 7 No. 2, 2014
pp. 182-199
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1753-8394
DOI 10.1108/IMEFM-06-2012-0051

1. Introduction
Shariah is regarded as the foundation of Islamic banks and, hence, no Islamic bank can
function without Shariah compliance because if anyone or any bank does not follow
Islamic Shariah, he/she cannot be recognized as Muslim and that bank cannot be treated
as Islamic bank (Al-Quran, 5:44). However, in some cases, it is observed that Islamic
banks cannot perfectly comply with Islamic Shariah due to economic systems,
Government rules and regulations due to lack of knowledge and seriousness of the

employees, lack of research and development and lack of sufficient rules and
regulations.
Abbas et al. (2009) stated that the distinct feature of Islamic banking is the existence
of Shariah board that comprised of religious scholars. This board exerts influence on
the operation of an Islamic bank. Abbas et al. (2009) and Iqbal et al. (1998) hold that new
products for the Islamic banks cannot be introduced without prior permission and
approval from the Shariah board. Siddiqi (2006a) said that the Shariah experts do have
a very significant role in the contemporary practice of Islamic banking, much more than
in the context of early days of the Islamic economic project. However, Siddiqi (2006b)
identified few limitations of the present Shariah supervisory practices such as:
Shariah experts have been doing what their training equips them to do, and they
have been doing it well, but unfortunately their training is no longer well-designed
to serve the Maqasid al-Shariah in circumstances very different from the
environment reflected in the books they study;
lacking proper institutional arrangements for training to do the task, with its
necessary backup in terms of fundamental research, instances of malfunctioning
have been increasing in recent years causing anxieties in the market and raising
the possibility of a backlash in terms of consumer rejection;
the trend of focusing on duplicating conventional financial products through a
kind of Islamic financial engineering started in 1990s and came to dominate the
scene in the new century. The most important areas seem to be Sukuk (duplicating
bonds) and tawarruq (duplicating bank loans);
the current practice of Shariah advisement/auditing, buttressed by occasional
hearings given to economists, is vulnerable to mal-function; and
to appreciate part of the complexity, let us remember that economists were always
called on to assist the Shariah experts by the sponsors of Shariah boards/
advisories.
Iqbal et al. (1998) said that lack of institutional framework, Islamic banking laws and
supervisory framework limits the scope and functions of Islamic banks and they also
stated that in most countries Islamic banks are put under the supervision of the central
bank of the country and are given the same treatment as given to conventional
commercial banks. Therefore, Islamic banks are bound to perform some activities (e.g.
keeping deposits with central bank) which are contrary to Islamic Shariah and
sometimes they cannot enjoy or participate in some programs (e.g. taking loan from
central bank as lender of last resort) arranged by central bank because of Shariah
compliance. As there was no study in this area in Bangladesh, the paper aimed at
evaluating the Shariah compliance status of the Islamic banking companies in
Bangladesh.
The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the literature
review. Section 3 states the objectives of the study. The research methodology is
outlined in Section 4. Section 5 discusses the limitations of the study. Sections 6-7
present the results and analysis. Section 8 provides recommendations and Section 9
provides implications of the study. Finally, Section 10 presents directions to further
study and Section 11 states the conclusion.

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
183

IMEFM
7,2

184

2. Literature review
Shariah is the Arabic word for Islamic law, also known as the Law of Allah. The term
Shariah itself derives from the verb Sharaa, which according to Dictionary of the Holy
Quran connects to the idea of spiritual law (5:48) and system of divine law; way of
belief and practice (45:18) in the Quran (Omar, 2010). Shariah has certain laws which
are regarded as divinely ordained, concrete and timeless for all relevant situations.
There are four sources of Islamic Shariah:
(1) interpretations of the Quran (The Holy Book of the Muslims consisting of the
revelations made by God to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) during his
Prophethood of about 23 years);
(2) interpretations of the Sunnah/Hadith (After the Quran, the Sunnah is the most
important source of the Islamic faith and refers essentially to the Prophets
example as indicated by his practice of the faith);
(3) Ijma, consensus amongst scholars (Consensus of the jurists on any issue of fiqh
after the death of the Prophet (pbuh)/collective reasoning); and
(4) Qiyas/Ijtihad analogical deduction (individual reasoning).
Islamic banks are Islamic because of performing their activities as per the guidelines
of Islamic Shariah and basically the Shariah is the main guiding principles for
directing all operations of Islamic banks (Siddiqi, 1983; Ahmad, 1984; Siddiqi, 1985;
Khan and Mirakhor, 1986; Ahmad, 2000; Siddiqui, 2001). The findings of the studies
of Ahmad and Haron (2002), Naser et al. (1999), Metawa and Almossawi (1998),
Rashid et al. (2014) and Archer and Karim (2002) showed that Shariah compliance or
religion is the single most important factor for choosing Islamic banks and Shariah
compliance guarantees the credibility of Islamic banks and inspires confidence in
the shareholders and stakeholders (Briston and El-Ashker, 1986; Tomkins and
Karim, 1987; Karim, 1990b; 1990a; Banaga et al., 1994; Bhambra, 2002; Rammal, 2006;
Ghayad, 2008; Laldin, 2008). The studies of Chapra (1992) and Ariff (1988) identified that
Islamic banks are interest-free banks and Chapra and Khan (2000) stated that though
Islamic banking systems appear like interest-based instruments, they are not so, as
there are significant differences between the two for a number of reasons. Finally, the
studies of Jalil and Rahman (2010), Imam and Kpodar (2010), Rarick (2009), Bidabad and
Allahyarifard (2008) and Abdul Rahman (2007) also noted that cruelty and injustice in
the financial system due to Riba is removed and socioeconomic development is ensured
by introducing the Halal ways of doing business e.g. Musharkah, Mudharbah, Bai
Salam and Ijarah.
But the study of Malik et al. (2011) argued that much of the financing offered by
Islamic banks actually bear a closer semblance to debt instruments than to
profit-and-loss sharing and Yusof and Fahmy (2008) stated that the most common
argument against contemporary Islamic banking in Malaysia is that there is no
difference at all without changing the name and documents and using profit rate in
Islamic banking instead of interest rate. Moreover, recent researches about the
Islamicity of the current Islamic finance model have created a lot of doubts regarding
Shariah compliance and attainment of Shariah objectives. The study of Meera and
Larbani (2009) confirmed that the current model operating similar to conventional
banking, violates Shariah, therefore, hinders the attainment of the objectives of Islamic

law. Again and Yousef (2004), Abozaid and Asyraf (2007), Meera and Dazuljastri (2005)
and Kuran (2004) have cast doubts in the Islamicity of the current operations of Islamic
banks today. Furthermore, Iqbal (1997) believed that Islamic banking should emphasize
on prohibition of interest and Maulana Taqi Usmani was reported to have said that 85
per cent of the Sukuk (Bonds) issued worldwide are un-Islamic. (BBC News, December
11, 2009). According to Usmani (2008), most of the Sukuk in the market are not
Shariah-compliant and these so-called Islamic products are Shariah-compliant in their
form but not in their spirit. Similarly, Febianto (2010) expressed that Islamic banks often
describe themselves as being providers of ethical financial services and more efficient
than the conventional counterparts, but in reality the practice does not always comply
with Islamic ethics. Chong and Liu (2009) also found that theoretically Islamic banking
is profit-and-loss sharing (PLS) system but practically it is not very different from
conventional banking. Their study on Malaysia revealed that only a negligible portion
of Islamic bank financing is strictly PLS-based and that Islamic deposits are not
interest-free, but are closely pegged to conventional deposits.
Iqbal and Molyneux (2005) expressed that though the objective of establishing
Islamic banking is to provide Shariah-compliant (i.e. interest-free) banking but these
banks are not religious institutions but profit-oriented organizations. The studies of
Abdullah (1996), Ansari and Memon (2008), Meera and Dzuljastri (2005), Obaidullah
(2008) explained that the rates of interest are taken into account when the mark-up on
Murabaha transaction is determined, as inflation is measured and rates of interest are
compared to each other. Based on this statement, they ultimately argued that the
determination of profit rate in the Murabaha financing is based on the rate sat by
conventional banks and the dependence on LIBOR (London Inter Bank Offered Rate)
shows the existence of interest in Murabaha financing concept (Usmani, 2002).
Similarly, Hassan (2012) found that the Shariah reviews were found not to be effectively
implemented by the Shariah boards and hence, there is a dire need for Islamic banks and
their Shariah boards consciously reconsider their present approaches and behaviors
(Kahf, 2004).
Regarding impediments to Islamic Shariah compliance, Ahmad and Hassan (2007)
opined that the most important issue is the lack of a well-defined regulatory and
supervisory framework for Islamic banks for their effective functioning in line with the
tenets of Shariah, that is, following the same policy guidelines for Islamic and
conventional banking by the Bangladesh Bank. Though Jordan, Gambia, the UAE,
Yemen and Kuwait have separate law for Islamic banks, but Qatar, Bangladesh and
Pakistan have no Islamic banking law, although Islamic banking is an important part of
banking sector in these countries. In Malaysia and Sudan, the central bank also has a
central Shariah board, but separate Shariah board is not available in other countries
that are practicing Islamic banking. Another problem faced by the Islamic banking is
the shortcoming of qualified professionals at all levels who have the knowledge of both
conventional banking and Islamic laws (Malik et al., 2011; Grais and Pellegrini, 2006).
According to a survey by the Khaleej Times (2008), there are only 250-300 Shariah
scholars out of which around 15-20 are most sought for which the Shariah boards
tend to be overburdened and the approval process becomes difficult and
unpredictable (Malik et al., 2011). Chapra and Khan (2000) and Chapra and Ahmed
(2002) identified the limitations of time and supportive staff of Shariah Scholars in
performing their tasks effectively. Fatwa shopping, tempting or influencing or

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
185

IMEFM
7,2

186

invisible hand of management on the decision of Shariah Supervisory Board,

different interpretation of existing Shariah rulings (Grais and Pellegrini, 2006;
Ullah, 2012) and lack of specially-designed Shariah-complaint financial products
(Koch and Stenberg, 2010) were found to instigate Shariah violation.
3. Objectives and research questions of the study
The main objective of the study is to analyze the status of Shariah compliance of some
selected Islamic banks in Bangladesh. To attain the main objective, the following
specific objectives are set:
to have an idea of the needs for Shariah compliance in general and specifically in
banking;
to find out the intensity of Shariah violation in Islamic banks in Bangladesh;
to identify the limitations and causes for which the Islamic banks are handicapped
to full compliance with Shariah in Bangladesh; and
to recommend some measures to remove Shariah non-compliance in Islamic
banks in Bangladesh.
4. Methodology of the study
The study is based on both primary and secondary data. Primary sources of data
include opinions of respondents against given questionnaire and face-to-face
conversation with the selected senior executives. Out of seven Islamic banks in
Bangladesh, four Islamic banks (57.14 per cent of the population) were taken as sample
considering their size based on number of branches and age from the year of
establishment.
Primary data were based on the opinions of 334 respondents, having 121 from Islami
Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL), 79 from Al-Arafah Islami Bank Limited (AIBL), 63
from Export Import Bank of Bangladesh Limited (EXIM) and 71 from Shahjalal Islami
Bank Limited (SJIBL) distributed as per the size of the bank. Two set of questionnaires
were distributed to each respondent. First set concentrated in collecting data regarding
importance of Shariah, impediments to Shariah compliance, Shariah audit and
Shariah research and prospects of Islamic banking. Data were collected based on
5-point Likert scale as, 2 strongly agree, 1 agree, 0 neutral, 1 disagree and
2 strongly disagree, and then mean of the score and percentages of opinions were
calculated for the purpose of analysis.
Second set of questionnaires concentrated in collecting data regarding degree of
Shariah violation scaling as 0 not occurred, 1 very rarely occurred, 2 rarely
occurred, 3 moderately occurred, 4 highly occurred and 5 very highly occurred.
Common Shariah violation areas were identified through literature review and on the
basis of the opinions of pilot survey. After collecting opinions of the respondents,
weighted average, percentage, SD, coefficient of variation (CV), total Shariah violation
score of the sample banks were calculated based on the average opinion and then a
correlation matrix was constructed showing association between Shariah violation
score (SVS) and bank size (total assets [TA], gross revenue [GR] and number of branches
[NOB]), number of Shariah Board Members (SBM), return on assets (ROA), return on
investment (ROI), net profit margin (NPM) and investment deposit ratio (IDR) of 2010
of the sample banks.

Secondary sources of data include Quran, Hadiths, different circulars/letters,

different manuals, research books and journals, annual reports and Web sites of the
sample banks.
5. Limitations of the study
During the study, researcher faced some limitations some of which are as follows:
Researcher has limitations of knowledge in Islamic banking and economy.
Books on Shariah were mostly written in Arabic which is an obstacle to the
researcher.
Researcher faced scarcity of resources like funds, books, journals and research
papers for the purpose of the study.
Bank officials are very busy and, therefore, it was very difficult to manage them
for taking interviews for the study.
Study on Islamic banking is somehow new and banking is a vast area which
requires more time for an in-depth study. But the researcher, beyond his regular
duties, had some time constraint.

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
187

6. Analysis of the opinion survey

6.1 Importance of Islamic Shariah
From Table I, average score of opinions regarding giving first priority in Shariah
compliance is 1.715 which indicates that maximum respondents strongly agreed in this
Question/opinion
Shariah compliance is the first priority
in performing all the transactions of
Islamic bank
Higher authority takes sufficient
programs to provide Shariah
knowledge to the officers
More training programs are necessary
to provide Shariah knowledge to the
officers and to make them more aware
about Shariah compliance
Officers/Executives always provide
100 per cent efforts to comply Shariah
in all transactions
Officers/Executives are enough
knowledgeable to comply Shariah in
all transactions
More clients are attracted to Islamic
Banks in Bangladesh for Shariah
compliance of the banks
More clients are attracted to Islamic
Banks in Bangladesh for earning more
profit by the banks

IBBL

AIBL

EXIM

SJIBL

Average

SD

1.74

1.68

1.66

1.78

1.715

0.055

0.003

0.79

0.44

0.56

0.54

0.583

0.148

0.022

1.58

1.62

1.76

1.60

1.640

0.082

0.007

0.44

0.34

0.40

0.48

0.415

0.060

0.004

0.51

0.50

0.48

0.62

0.528

0.063

0.004

1.62

1.67

1.58

1.54

1.603

0.056

0.003

0.12

1.22

1.16

1.26

0.940

0.548

Source: Own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic banks July-September, 2011

0.301

Table I.
Opinion of the senior
executives regarding
importance of Shariah

IMEFM
7,2

188

regard. Specifically, on an average 76.05 per cent strongly agreed and 22.16 per cent
agreed that Islamic banks under study provide first priority is Shariah compliance in
performing all transactions of the Islamic banks. But on the other hand, 28.14 per cent of
the employees opined that higher authorities do not arrange sufficient programs for
making employees more knowledgeable in Shariah. The average score of opinions of
0.583 and 0.415 of statements 2 and 3 respectively also indicate the poor position of
higher authorities and employees for 100 per cent Shariah compliance. More
specifically, 50.90 per cent of the employees negatively or neutrally responded regarding
providing sufficient efforts for 100 per cent Shariah compliance.
As per the opinions regarding knowledge of the executives on Shariah compliance is
also a matter of frustration. The average score of 0.528 indicates poor knowledge of the
officers in Shariah. Though 61.98 per cent positively agreed but 26.64 per cent
respondents negatively replied in this point that they are not sufficiently
knowledgeable. Average score 1.64 of statement 3 of Table I indicates that the officers of
the Islamic banks need more training to provide Shariah knowledge. On an average,
98.50 per cent responded positively including 64.97 per cent strongly agreed to provide
more training on Shariah compliance. Iqbal et al. (1998) also mentioned that many
managers of Islamic banks are not very well trained in the use of Islamic modes of
finance and unfortunately very little effort has been made to meet these requirements.
Average score of opinions of 1.603 of statement 6 and 0.94 of statement 7, respectively,
revealed that clients of Islamic banks are attracted to these banks because of Shariah
compliance but not because of earning much profit. On an average, 94.91 per cent
executives think that more clients are attracted to Islamic Banks in Bangladesh for
Shariah compliance of the banks, while 69.16 per cent strongly agreed in this regard.
Hence, Shariah compliance seemed to be the prime cause of attraction of the people. On
the other hand, 34.14 per cent of the executives think more profit earning capacity is the
cause of attracting more clients but 65.86 per cent responded negatively in this regard.
6.2 Impediments to Shariah compliance
Iqbal et al. (1998) said that Islamic banking institutions all over the world try to benefit
from the institutional framework that support conventional banking, but they suffer
from the lack of institutional support specifically geared to their needs. Iqbal et al. (1998)
also identified that the commercial banking and company laws in most of the Islamic
countries were fashioned on the Western pattern and the provisions of conventional
banking laws narrow the scope of activities of Islamic banking within conventional
limits. Average scores of 0.883, 0.780 and 1.058 of statements 1, 2 and 3, respectively, of
Table 2 indicate that Government rules and regulations, Bangladesh Banks rules and
regulations and interest-based economy of Bangladesh are impediments to Shariah
compliance by the Islamic banks in Bangladesh. More specifically, 82.04 per cent of the
respondents blamed Government rules and regulations, 68.86 per cent respondents
blamed Bangladesh Banks rules and regulations and 88.02 per cent respondents
blamed interest-based economy of Bangladesh as major impediments to Shariah
compliance.
Average score of statements 4, 5, 6 and 7 of Table II indicate, respectively, that
Shariah compliance is not an impediment for competition with the modern banks;
promoters of the Islamic bank are not more interested to profit earning instead of
Shariah compliance; employees of the bank are not more interested to profit earning

Question/opinion
Govt. rules and regulations sometimes
create obstacle in complying Shariah
Bangladesh Banks rules and
regulations sometimes create obstacle
in complying Shariah
Shariah compliance is sometimes
difficult due to Interest based
Economy of Bangladesh
Shariah compliance is an impediment
for competition with the modern
banks
Promoters of bank are more interested
to profit earning instead of Shariah
compliance
Employees of the bank are more
interested to profit earning instead of
Shariah compliance
100 per cent of Shariah compliance is
impossible
Shariah compliance is comparatively
easier in a Muslim majority country
like Bangladesh

IBBL

AIBL

EXIM

SJIBL

Average

SD

0.87

0.92

0.98

0.76

0.883

0.093

0.009

0.62

0.72

0.98

0.80

0.780

0.152

0.023

1.17

1.16

0.98

0.92

1.058

0.127

0.016

0.53

0.08

0.50

0.24

0.298

0.283

0.080

0.96

0.82

0.86

0.92

0.890

0.062

0.004

0.85

0.46

0.72

0.58

0.653

0.169

0.029

0.53

0.40

0.40

0.32

0.413

0.087

0.008

0.98

0.82

0.88

0.84

0.880

0.071

0.005

Source: own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

instead of Shariah compliance; and 100 per cent Shariah compliance is not impossible.
More specifically, on an average, 23.95 per cent executives agreed that Shariah
compliance is an obstacle for competition with the conventional banking, while the rest
76.05 per cent responded negatively or neutrally.
Regarding statement 5 in Table II, the negative responses of 85.03 per cent
respondents reveal that the promoters of the Islamic Banks are not more interested to
profit earning instead of Shariah compliance. Regarding statement 6 in Table II, the
negative responses of 54.19 per cent respondents also divulge that employees of the
bank are not more interested to profit earning instead of Shariah compliance. But 33.53
per cent of the employees positively opined in this point. Comparing the average scores
of statement 5 and 6, it can be said that promoters of the Islamic banks are more
interested to Shariah compliance than employees of the Islamic banks. Regarding
statement 7, on an average 29.04 per cent respondents agreed that 100 per cent Shariah
compliance is impossible but 61.97 per cent negatively responded in this regard where
8.98 per cent showed neutral attitudes. Finally, on an average 82.04 per cent executives
including 26.95 per cent strongly agreed that Shariah compliance is comparatively
easier in a Muslim majority country like Bangladesh.
6.3 Shariah audit for Shariah compliance
Shariah audit is a must to ensure effective Shariah compliance of Islamic banking and
the objective of a Shariah review (audit) is to ensure that the activities carried out by an
IFI do not contravene the Shariah (AAOIFI, 2003). Average score of statement 1 in

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
189

Table II.
Opinion of the senior
executives regarding
impediments to Shariah
compliance

IMEFM
7,2

190

Table III reveals that existing Shariah audit system is not sufficient in ensuring
compliance of Shariah at all levels of the Islamic banks. The negative responses of 67.07
per cent executives, while 11.98 per cent strongly disagreed, recognize that existing
Shariah audit system is not sufficient. Regarding statement 2 in Table III, positive
responses of 87.12 per cent executives including 54.19 per cent strongly agreed
emphasized that branch level Shariah audit is to be given more emphasis for more
accurate Shariah compliance of the banks.
Shariah audit is of utmost important to ensure Shariah compliance in spite of having
good intension. The survey reveals that the following limitations of Shariah audit are
hampering Shariah compliance of Islamic banking:
shortage of manpower for audit purpose;
shortage of knowledgeable auditors;
time limitation for inspector;
lack of adequate logistics,
non-utilization of modern techniques;
misunderstanding among the Muraqibs and the Officials;
lack of full time Muraqibs;
different in practice for different mode of investment and items;
Shariah auditors and Muraqibs are not proficient in English; and
non-preservation of records properly against transaction at Branch level.
6.4 Shariah research for Shariah compliance
The main sources of Islamic Shariah are Quran and Hadiths where Islamic rules and
regulations are briefly ascertained for unforeseeable future. But new problems are
arising for which Islamic Shariah research is a must to face the challenges ahead.
Shariah research is very important for Islamic banks to develop guidelines for the areas

Question/opinion

Table III.
Opinion of the senior
executives regarding
Shariah audit and
Shariah research

Existing Shariah Audit system is

sufficient in complying Shariah
at all levels of the bank
Branch level Shariah Audit is to
be given more emphasis for more
accurate Shariah compliance of
the bank
There is some lake of specific
Shariah guidelines regarding
modern banking areas/issues
More Shariah Research is to be
done to formulate new guidelines
for creating new avenues for
Islamic Banking

IBBL

AIBL

EXIM

SJIBL

Average

SD

0.65

0.88

0.82

0.82

0.793

0.099

0.010

1.34

1.54

1.50

1.48

1.465

0.087

0.008

1.05

1.10

1.20

1.18

1.133

0.070

0.005

1.62

1.66

1.70

1.58

1.640

0.052

0.003

Source: own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

where Islamic banks cannot finance or operate their business. On an average, 90.12 per
cent employees agreed that there is some lack of specific Shariah guidelines regarding
modern banking issues, while 11.98 per cent strongly agreed. Hence, the positive
responses of 96.11 per cent executives, while 66.17 per cent strongly agreed, divulge that
more Shariah research is to be done to formulate new guidelines for creating new
avenues for Islamic banking. Regarding Shariah research, Iqbal et al. (1998) expressed
similar opinion. They mentioned that in the area of research, Islamic banks, neither
individually nor as a group spend enough amount on research and development.

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
191

7. Shariah violation and its association with bank-specific attributes

Opinions of the respondents regarding Shariah violations in the selected areas
(Abdullah, 2011 and Saleh, 2011) of Islamic banking were analyzed (Tables A1-5) and it
was observed that comparatively high Shariah violation occurs in case of receiving
goods delivery by investment client in lieu of the bank officer (4.422), taking signature of
the client in blank agreement form (2.220), taking cash memos after investment (2.082),
preserving agreement form without date and witness (1.998), having no evidence of
goods received by the branch from the sellers (1.963), having no evidence of goods
received by the client from the branch (1.800), taking cash memos before investment
(1.664), taking cash memos of purchased goods in the clients name instead of the bank
(1.312), providing cash credit to the client directly or indirectly (1.029) and having no
signature of the branch manager in agreement form (1.015).
Having summation of all the average opinion of the respondents, total Shariah
violation score was calculated which is 11.110 of IBBL, 17.879 of AIBL, 39.306 of EXIM
and 37.605 of SJIBL. Based on the literature of Ahmed (2009), Ullah (2013) and
Al-Baluchi (2006), the following correlation matrix was constructed to test the
hypothesis that there is a significant association between SVS and bank size (TA, GR
and NOB), number of SBM, ROA, ROI, NPM and IDR.
From the above correlation matrix, it can be observed that correlation between total
assets and gross revenue; between ROI and number of branches; correlation between
Shariah violation score and IDR; correlation between ROA and IDR; and correlation
between ROI and net profit margin may be an issue while collinearity across the other
variables are not. Table IV shows a large amount of significant collinearity (p 0.01)
between ROI and number of branches (.999). Other significant but relatively weaker

SVS
SVS
Log of TA
Log of GR
NOB
SBM
ROA
ROI
NPM
IDR

1.000
0.574
0.427
0.783
0.034
0.941
0.788
0.663
0.986*

Log of TA

1.000
0.986*
0.941
0.835
0.708
0.929
0.859
0.687

Correlations matrix
Log of GR
NOB
SBM

1.000
0.877
0.915
0.587
0.862
0.811
0.555

1.000
0.612
0.903
0.999**
0.946
0.872

1.000
0.214
0.591
0.567
0.175

ROA

ROI

1.000
0.915
0.870
0.977*

1.000
0.957*
0.877

NPM

IDR

Table IV.
Association between
1.000
Shariah violation score
and bank attributes of the
Notes: * Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (two-tailed); ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (two-tailed)
sample banks
Source: own analysis using SPSS software
1.000
0.774

IMEFM
7,2

192

coefficients (p 0.05) are reported for the correlation between total assets and gross
revenue (0.986), between Shariah violation score and IDR (0.986), between ROA and IDR
(0.977) and between ROI and net profit margin (0.957).
As there is a positive correlation between Shariah violation score and IDR, therefore,
it can be said that the higher is the IDR the higher is the possibility of Shariah violation.
In other words, it may be said that Shariah violations are occurred mostly in the
investment areas in Islamic banking in Bangladesh. It also can be observed from the
abovementioned Shariah violations that most of the violations are minor in nature and
could be avoided if the branch management were a bit careful and alert.
8. Recommendations of the study
On the basis of the findings of the study, the following measures are recommended for
officials, clients and management whose active participation is a must for successful
Shariah compliance of the Islamic banks in Bangladesh:
Islamic banks need to increase Shariah knowledge and commitment to Shariah
compliance of the employees for increasing Allah fearing and adherence to the
Islamic Shariah in personal, family, social and political life.
Islamic banks should boost up the sincerity and devotion of the employees for
Shariah compliance in general ledger, documentation and involvement in buying
and selling process directly.
Islamic banks should increase their assistance for the clients in acquiring
knowledge regarding Shariah, modes of investment, Islamic banking and
economy and in building good relationship with the suppliers.
Islamic banks need to appoint Islamically knowledgeable sufficient employees,
provide logistic support and introduce reward/punishment for Shariah
compliance/non compliance.
Islamic banks should give more emphasis on branch level Shariah inspection and
Shariah compliance and holding weekly or monthly review meeting at branch
levels to evaluate Shariah compliance of the branch.
Islamic banks should empower the Shariah Council by increasing the number of
Muraqibs and by appointing full-time Shariah supervisors and auditors.
Islamic banks need to spend more for research in developing Islamic money
market and Islamic instruments alternative to the hedging, arbitrage, swapping,
forward booking, etc.
9. Implications of the study
Among others, the major policy implications of this study are as follows:
regulatory bodies and SBM are expected to have guidelines from this study to find
their limitations and to determine their future responsibilities;
executives and employees are expected to get the idea of present state of Shariah
compliance and to identify their weaknesses in this regard;
clients and other stakeholders are expected to have guidelines to choose the better
Islamic banks to perform banking transactions; and

 the researchers in Islamic banking may usefully use the issues raised in this
article for more comprehensive studies in Islamic banking and Shariah
compliance.
10. Directions to further study
The present study highlighted few issues of Shariah compliance in Islamic banking and
proposes the following areas for further study, in this regard:
analyzing and justifying the autonomy, powers and functions of Shariah board
and its members for successful Shariah compliance;
Shariah compliance in Islamic banking branches of the traditional interest-based
banks; and
comparative study of Shariah compliance in Islamic banks and Islamic banking
branches of the traditional interest-based banks.
11. Conclusion
Shariah compliance is an indispensable function of the Islamic banks and the
Islamic banks under the present study in Bangladesh are mostly found to comply
with the Shariah. All the Islamic banks under study are, more or less, violating
Islamic Shariah, and it is expected to be easy to avoid these violations if the higher
authority and branch management give adequate attention and duly motivate their
employees. Finally, if Islamic banks can fully comply with Shariah, hopefully they
will improve their business and services at a saturated level of satisfaction, in
future, Inshallah.
References
AAOIFI (2003), Accounting, Auditing and Governance Standards for Islamic Financial
Institutions, AAOIFI, Manama.
Abbas, S.Z.M., Rahman, R.A. and Mahenthiran, S. (2009), Ultimate ownership and performance
of Islamic Financial Institutions in Malaysia, Asian Finance Association Conference,
available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract1392833 (accessed 21 April 2009).
Abdul Rahman, A.R. (2007), Islamic banking and finance: between ideas and realities, The
International Islamic University Malaysia Journal of Economics and Management, Vol. 15
No. 2, pp. 123-141.
Abdullah, M. (2011), Shariah Lapses and Irregularities and Role of Officials in Implementation of
Shariah, Lecture Notes for Shariah Training, IBTRA, Bangladesh.
Abdullah, S. (1996), Islamic Banking and Interest, E.J Brill, New York, NY, p. 84.
Abozaid, A. and Asyraf, W.D. (2007), The challenges of realizing maqasid al-shariah in Islamic
Banking and Finance, International Conference on Islamic Banking and Finance Research
and Development, IIUM Malaysia.
Ahmad, A.U.F. and Hassan, M.K. (2007), Regulation and performance of Islamic banking in
Bangladesh, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 49 No. 2, pp. 251-277.
Ahmad, K. (2000), Islamic finance and banking: the challenge and prospects, Review of Islamic
Economics, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 57-82.
Ahmad, N. and Haron, S. (2002), Perceptions of malaysian corporate customers towards Islamic
Banking Products and Services, International Journal of Islamic Financial Services, Vol. 3
No 4.

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
193

IMEFM
7,2

194

Ahmad, Z. (1984), Concept and Models of Islamic banking: An Assessment, In Islamization of

Banking, Karachi.
Ahmed, A.A. (2009), Compliance of Financial Disclosure in Corporate Annual Reports of
Banking Sector in Bangladesh, Unpublished PhD Dissertation, University of Rajshahi,
Bangladesh.
Al-Baluchi, A.E.A. (2006), The Impact of AAOIFI Standards and Other Bank Characteristics on
the Level of Voluntary Disclosure in the Annual Reports of Islamic Banks, School of
Management University of Surrey, UK.
Ansari, M. and Memon, F.A. (2008), Is Islamic Banking Really Islamic?, Islamic Finance News,
Vol. 5, pp. 24-27.
Archer, S. and Karim, R.A.A. (2002), Islamic Finance Innovation and Growth, Euro-money Books
and AAOIFI, London.
Ariff, M. (1988), Islamic banking, Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 48-64.
Banaga, A., Tomkins, C. and Ray, G. (1994), External Audit and Corporate Governance in Islamic
Banks: A Joint Practitioner-Academic Research Study, Avebury.
Bhambra, H. (2002), Supervisory Implications of Islamic Finance in the Current Regulatory
Environment, in Archer, S. and Karim, R.A.A. (Eds), Islamic finance: the regulatory
challenge, John Willey, Singapore, pp. 198-212.
Bidabad, B. and Allahyarifard, M. (2008), Assets and liabilities management in Islamic Banking,
Bijan Bidabad, available at: www.bidabad.com/doc/alm-english.pdf (accessed 21 May
2011).
Briston, R. and El-Ashker, A. (1986), Religious Audit: could it happen here?, Accountancy,
Vol. 98 No. 1118, p. 120.
Chapra, M.U. (1992), Islam and Economic Challenges, The Islamic Foundation, Leicester.
Chapra, M.U. and Ahmed, H. (2002), Corporate governance in Islamic financial institutions,
Occasional Paper No. 6, Islamic Research and Training Institute, Islamic Development
Bank, Jeddah.
Chapra, M.U. and Khan, T. (2000), Regulation and supervision of Islamic Banks, Occasional
Paper No. 3, Islamic Research And Training Institute, Islamic Development Bank, Jeddah.
Chong, B.S. and Liu, M.H. (2009), Islamic banking: interest-free or interest-based?, Pacific-Basin
Finance Journal, Vol. 17 No. 1, pp. 125-144, available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pacfin
(accessed 12 March 2007).
Febianto, I. (2010), The ethical perspective on the practices of Islamic Banking, available at:
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id1672140 (accessed 8 October 2011).
Ghayad, R. (2008), Corporate governance and the global performance of Islamic banks,
Humanomics, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 207-216.
Grais, W. and Pellegrini, M. (2006), Corporate governance and Shariah compliance in institutions
offering Islamic Financial Services, Working Paper 4054, November, World Bank Policy
Research.
Hassan, A.F.S. (2012), An empirical investigation into the role, independence and effectiveness of
Shariah boards in the malaysian Islamic Banking Industry, Unpublished PhD Thesis,
Cardiff University.
Imam, P. and Kpodar, K. (2010), Islamic banking: how has it diffused?, IMF Working Paper No.
10195, International Monetary Fund, available at: www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2010/
wp10195.pdf (accessed 21 May 2011).

Iqbal, M. and Molyneux, P. (2005), Thirty Years of Islamic Banking: History, Performance and
Prospects, Palgrave Macmillan Publishers, London.
Iqbal, M., Ahmad, A. and Khan, T. (1998), Challenges facing Islamic Banking, Islamic Research
and Training Institute, Islamic Development Bank, Occasional Paper No. 1, (1st ed.), ISBN:
9960-32-065-0.
Iqbal, Z. (1997), Islamic financial systems, Finance and Development, Vol. 34 No. 2,
pp. 42-45.
Jalil, M.A. and Rahman, M.K. (2010), Financial transactions in Islamic Banking are viable
alternatives to the conventional banking transactions, International Journal of Business
and Social Science, Vol. 1 No. 3, pp. 219-233.
Kahf, M. (2004), Success factors of Islamic Banks: based on a study of the actual conduct of some
Islamic Banks, Brunei Symposium on Islamic Banking and Finance, Brunei.
Karim, R.A.A. (1990a), The independence of religious and external auditors: the case
of Islamic Banks, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 3 No. 3,
pp. 34-44.
Karim, R.A.A. (1990b), Standard setting for the financial reporting of religious business
organizations: the case of Islamic Banks, Accounting and Business Research, Vol. 20
No. 80, pp. 299-305.
KhaleeJ Times (2008),Islamic banks enjoys double digit growth, KhaleeJ Times.
Khan, M.S. and Mirakhor, A. (1986), The framework and practices of Islamic Banking, Finance
Development, 3, No. September, pp. 32-36.
Koch, C. and Stenberg, L. (2010), The EU and the GCC: Challenges and Prospects under the
Swedish EU Presidency, Gulf Research Center, ISBN 978-9948-490-01-2, United Arab
Emirates, Dubai.
Kuran, T. (2004), Islam and Mammon: The Economic Predicaments of Islamism, Princeton
University Press, NJ.
Laldin, M.A. (2008), Roles and responsibilities of Shariah scholars in Shariah advisory services
series-part 1 of 2, The Halal Journal, Vol. 11 September-October, pp. 54-56.
Malik, M.S., Malik, A. and Mustafa, W. (2011), Controversies that make Islamic banking
controversial: an analysis of issues and challenges, American Journal of Social and
Management Sciences, ISSN Print: 2156-1540, ISSN Online: 2151-1559, doi:10.5251/
ajsms.2011.2.1.41.46 2011, ScienceHu, available at: www.scihub.org/AJSMS (accessed
17 October 2011).
Meera, A.K.M. and Dzuljastri, A.R. (2005), Islamic home financing through musharakah
mutanaqisah and al-bai bithaman ajil contracts: comparative analysis, Journal of The
International Association for Islamic Economics, Vol. 9 No. 2, p. 7.
Meera, A.K.M. and Larbani, M. (2009), Ownership effects of fractional reserve system,
Homanomics, Vol. 25 No. 4, pp. 101-116.
Metawa, S.A. and Almossawi, M. (1998), Banking behaviour of Islamic bank customers:
perspectives and implications, International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 16 No. 7,
pp. 299-313.
Naser, K., Jamal, A. and Al-Khatib, L. (1999), Islamic banking: a study of customer satisfaction
and preferences in Jordan, International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 17 No. 3,
pp. 135-150.
Obaidullah, M. (2008), Islamic Finance for Micro and Medium Enterprises, Center for Islamic
Banking, Finance and Management, University Brunei Darussalam.

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
195

IMEFM
7,2

196

Omar, A.M. (2010), Dictionary of Holy Quran, NOOR foundation-international, 13, 2nd ed,
Library of Congress Control No.: 2005298281, Reprinted in February 26,DIGIT ISBN:
978-0-9632067-94, ISBN: 0963206796.
Rammal, H.G. (2006), The importance of Shariah supervision in Islamic financial institutions,
Corporate Ownership and Control, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 204-208.
Rarick, C.A. (2009), Islamic finance: an alternative in the global financial market?, Social
Science Research Network available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract1332793 (accessed 21
May 2011).
Rashid, M., Hassan, M.K. and Ahmad, A.U.F. (2014), Quality perception of the customers towards
domestic Islamic banks in Bangladesh, Journal of Islamic Economics, Banking and
Finance, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 109-131.
Saleh, S.A.M. (2011), Shariah Lapses, Shariah Lapses/Irregularities found in Islamic Banking
Operations and Effective Action Plan for Prevention of Shariah Lapses, Lecture Notes for
Shariah Training, IBTRA, Bangladesh, pp. 50-59.
Siddiqi, M.N. (1983), Issues in Islamic banking, The Islamic Foundation, Leicester.
Siddiqi, M.N. (1985), Partnership and profit-sharing in Islamic law, The Islamic Foundation, Leicester.
Siddiqi, M.N. (2006a), Shariah, Economics and the Progress of Islamic Finance: The Role of
Shariah Experts, Concept paper presented to stimulate discussion at the Pre-Forum
Workshop on Select Ethical and Methodological Issues in Shariah-Compliant Finance, 21
April, Seventh Harvard Forum on Islamic Finance, Cambridge, MA.
Siddiqi, M.N. (2006b), Islamic banking and finance in theory and practice: a survey of state of the
art, Islamic Economic Studies, Vol. 13 No. 2.
Siddiqui, S.H. (2001), Islamic banking: true modes of financing?, New Horizon, May-June.
Tomkins, C. and Karim, R.A.A. (1987), The Shariah and its implications for Islamic financial
analysis: an opportunity to study interactions among society, organization, and
accounting, The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, Vol. 4 No. 1, pp. 101-115.
Ullah, M.H. (2013), Accounting and Reporting Practices of Islamic Banks in Bangladesh,
Unpublished M. Phil Thesis, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Ullah, S. (2012), Fatwa Repositioning: the Hidden Struggle for Shara Compliance within Islamic
Financial Institutions, Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Southampton, UK.
Usmani, M.I.A. (2002), Meezan Banks Guide to Islamic Banking, Darul Ishaat Urdu, Pakistan,
p. 126.
Usmani, M.T. (2008), Sukuk and their contemporary applications, available at:
www.iefpedia.com (accessed 12 January 2012).
Yousef, T.M. (2004), The Murabaha syndrome in Islamic finance: laws, institutions and politics,
in Henry, C.M. and Wilson, R. (Eds), The Politics of Islamic Finance, Edinburgh University
Press, Edinburgh, pp. 63-80.
Yusof, E. and Fahmy, E. (2008), Are Islamic banks in Malaysia really Islamic?, MPRA Paper No.
20901, available at: http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/20901/ (accessed 23 February 2010).
Appendix
Table AI shows opinion of the senior executives regarding Shariah violations related to cash
memo. Table AII shows opinion of the senior executives regarding Shariah violations related to
receiving of goods delivery. Table AIII shows opinion of the senior executives regarding Shariah
violations related to agreement. Table AIV shows opinion of the senior executives regarding
Shariah violations related to charging profit or collection of rent. Table AV shows opinion of the
senior executives regarding other Shariah violations.

Question/opinion
Cash memos of purchase of goods are taken
in the clients name instead of the bank
Branches do not preserve cash-memo of the
goods purchased
Undated cash memos are taken
Cash-memos are taken before investment
Cash Memos are taken after investment
Cash Memos do not have signature of the
seller
Bank officers sign in the cash-memo as sellers

IBBL AIBL EXIM SJIBL Average

SD

0.053 0.234 2.632 2.328

1.312

1.357 1.841

0.017
0.679
0.877
1.734

0.858
0.789
1.664
2.082

0.908
0.115
0.651
0.331

0.825
0.013
0.423
0.109

SD

0.131
0.842
1.477
1.917

1.712
0.711
1.884
2.494

1.572
0.925
2.417
2.181

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
197

Table AI.
Opinion
of
the senior
0.034 0.072 0.217 0.161
0.121
0.083 0.007
executives regarding
0.011 0.122 0.622 0.878
0.408
0.411 0.169
Shariah violations related
to cash memo
Source: own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

Question/opinion
Investment client receives goods in lieu of
the bank officer
There is no evidence of goods received by
the client from the branches
There are no evidences of goods received by
the branch from the sellers

IBBL AIBL EXIM SJIBL Average

4.062 4.339 4.711

4.577

4.422

0.285 0.081

Table AII.
Opinion
of
the senior
0.012 0.288 3.384 3.517
1.800
1.910 3.647
executives regarding
0.014 0.828 3.449 3.561
1.963
1.812 3.283 Shariah violations related
to receiving of goods
delivery
Source: own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

Question/opinion
The signature of the client is being taken in
blank Agreement form(s)
Agreement form(s) are being preserved
without date and witness
Agreements do not contain the signature of
the branch managers

IBBL AIBL EXIM SJIBL Average

1.867 2.106 2.634

2.272

2.220

SD

0.322 0.104

Table AIII.
Opinion of the senior
executives regarding
0.119 0.216 1.939 1.784
1.015
0.981 0.962
Shariah violations related
to agreement
Source: Own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011
0.062 0.889 3.656

3.384

1.998

1.793 3.216

IMEFM
7,2

Question/opinion

IBBL

AIBL EXIM

SJIBL

Average

SD

Profit is charged before buying and

selling
0.000 0.117 0.142 0.088
0.087
0.062
Profit is charged more than one time on
the same buying and selling/deal
0.000 0.061 0.116 0.051
0.057
0.048
Profit is charged at the adjustment
198
stage covering profit for the excess
time of investment recovery instead of
charging with the cost price at the sale
stage
0.000 0.122 0.145 0.116
0.096
0.065
Profit is charged by creating BaiMuajjal investment if there is any
delay/non-receipt/lower Amount of
receipt against the sale proceeds of
export L/C
0.064 0.283 0.631 0.427
0.351
0.239
Profit is charged on stock lot without
buying and selling of the same
0.011 0.088 0.144 0.106
0.087
0.056
In case of pre-shipment Musharaka
financing, pre-determined profit in lieu
of actual profit earned is charged
0.017 0.121 0.414 0.284
0.209
0.175
Rent for gestation period is charged
before the asset becomes ready for
income generation
0.311 0.622 0.933 0.817
0.671
0.272
Some times Rent on rent is charged
0.021 0.056 0.127 0.093
0.074
0.046
In case of conversion of investment, the
previous debt is considered banks
equity. At the time of conversion of
Bai-Muajjal and Bai-Murabaha
Table AIV.
Investment (previous investment) to
Opinion of the senior
Hire Purchase, rent is charged without
executives regarding
establishing ownership of the bank on
Shariah violations related the asset
0.042 0.073 0.174 0.119
0.102
0.057
to charging profit or
collection of rent
Source: Own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

V
0.004
0.002

0.004

0.057
0.003

0.031

0.074
0.002

0.003

Question/opinion
Negotiation was not held between the
client and the branch to purchase
goods
The client makes advance payment
for goods then banks make full
payment of the goods on behalf of the
client and subsequently, the client
gets back the advanced money from
the seller
Goods are purchased from the sister
organizations of the client
Telegraphic Transfer (TT), Demand
Draft (DD), and Pay Order (PO) are
issued in favor of the client who put
signature on the application form of
TT, DD and PO in lieu of the branch
officers
At the time of encashment of PO the
client attest the signature of the seller
in lieu if the branch officer
To adjust the previous dues of the
clients, new investment is created
showing factious buying and selling
Cash credit is provided to the client
directly or indirectly
Letter of authority is not taken from
the client for selling the goods under
dealership
Creation of Baim-WES Bills (stock
lot)

IBBL

AIBL EXIM

SJIBL

Average

SD

0.156

0.667

0.917

0.699

0.396

0.157

1.057

Shariah
compliance in
Islamic banking
199

0.108

0.179

0.434

0.335

0.264

0.148

0.022

0.309

1.096

1.311

1.188

0.976

0.453

0.205

0.053

0.122

0.334

0.434

0.236

0.178

0.032

0.116

0.211

0.311

0.217

0.214

0.080

0.006

0.229

0.284

0.458

0.611

0.396

0.174

0.030

0.037

0.116

2.167

1.796

1.029

1.111

1.234

0.051

0.139

0.206

0.154

0.138

0.064

0.004

0.044

0.061

0.157

0.295

0.139

0.115

0.013

Source: own survey on senior executives of the sample Islamic Banks July-September, 2011

About the author

Hafij Ullah has completed his BBA and MBA and is currently an MPhil fellow at the University of
Chittagong. Hafij is an Assistant Professor, Doctorate of Business Administration, International
Islamic University, Chittagong, Bangladesh. He has more than seven years of teaching experience
at undergraduate and post-graduate levels. Hafij has 12 research publications published in
national and international journals. Hafij Ullah can be contacted at: hafij_1980@yahoo.com

To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: reprints@emeraldinsight.com

Or visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints

Table AV.
Opinion of the senior
executives regarding
other Shariah violations