The Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar, the highest Sunni authority in Egypt, said that the new political practice law, passed by Parliament last week contradict Shariah law. Muhammad Saied Tantawi said that the new law should have included a provision on Shariah law similar to that contained in the old law and that the new bill angered many top clerics in the country. âI totally reject the new law since Egypt is an Islamic and Arab country, and so do many members of the Council for Islamic Scholars who wanted to submit a memorandum to Parliament objecting the law,â said Tantawi. âBut Al-Azharâs opinion is only consultative, not legislative so I refused to send this memorandum in order not to get into problems with the government and Parliament,â he added. A member of Parliamentâs religious affairs committee, Abdel Moaty Bayoumi, said the committee had not been given the law to review. He said that under the new law âwe may see parties that call for things that are incompatible with Shariah in their platforms.â According to the new legislation, no license is granted to parties formed on a religious basis, a move that does not give the Muslim Brotherhood a chance to be officially recognized. The new political law sparked several debates in Egypt.