Constitutional Law: Reinterpretation of the Islamic Government within the Framework of Religious Content in the Jurisprudential Thoughts of Ayatollah Montazeri and Ayatollah Beheshti

The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran institutionalized the principle of Guardianship of the Jurist (Velayat-e Faqih) in the country and extended its influence over all aspects of the lives of the Iranian people. Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri and Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini Beheshti played an irreplaceable role in formulating the Constitution due to their positions in the parliament. Each of these two eminent figures had significant differences in their understanding of the Constitution and its concepts. This article, from the perspective of Skinner's hermeneutic method, delves into analyzing the prominent roles of these two figures in the Islamic Revolution in the drafting of the Constitution. What were their intentions and practical actions within the political system established by the Constitution? During a time when Islam was severely threatened by Western thought, they aimed to establish an Islamic political system. Montazeri believed that the principles and rules of fiqh concerning the concept of Guardianship of the Jurist were sufficient for governing Islamic society, while Beheshti viewed Islamic principles and standards around the axis of Guardianship of the Jurist as a framework that could selectively incorporate modern democratic, Marxist, and human rights concepts to be responsive to the current Iranian Islamic society. In the final analysis, Beheshti's theory prevailed in drafting the Constitution, bringing about an Islamic government through a constructed customary process.