Dar es Salaam. The High Court has declared that the National Muslim Council of Tanzania (Bakwata) is not the supreme or sole umbrella body for Muslims in Tanzania, ruling that state authorities acted unconstitutionally by compelling Muslim organisations to seek its endorsement as a condition for registration.
In a judgment delivered on Wednesday, December 24, 2025, a three-judge bench comprising Justices Elizabeth Mkwizu, Awamu Mbagwa and Hamidu Mwanga held that the Registrar of Societies and the Administrator-General lacked any legal basis to recognise Bakwata as the exclusive representative of the Muslim community.
