JUI-F agrees to support govt on military courts

Senate Deputy Chairman Abdul Ghafoor Haidri says decision important for peace in the country

PESHAWAR: The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) threw its weight behind the government on Saturday, signalling its willingness to back efforts to extend the tenure of military courts in the country.

Senate Deputy Chairman Abdul Ghafoor Haidri, who is also JUI-F’s general secretary, on Saturday said that like other political parties who are backing military courts, his party would also accept military court’s extension for the sake of peace in the country.

Addressing a prize distribution ceremony in Jamia Usmaniar, Haidri said the JUI-F had demanded an All Parties Conference when the military courts were formed but now since all the parties are supporting another two-year term for these courts the party has warmed up to the idea.



The JUI-F leader stated that educating children and equipping them with modern education to compete with the rest of the developed countries was the need of the hour.

“The 21st century demands are to provide education to the youth and bring positive change among them,” he said. Along with education there was need for proper guidance to follow Islamic principles.

Speaking about seminaries he said that since Pakistan lacked a system to acquire Islamic education the country needed seminaries otherwise there would have been no need for a separate system.

He further added that the only solution to resolve the country’s problems was to follow the teachings of Islam and this is what the country which came into being on the name of Islam needed.

Centenary celebrations

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl criticised both the district and provincial government for removing billboards publicising the party’s centenary celebration events.

Chanting slogans and holding placards, the JUI-F activists on Saturday blocked the main GT Road for all vehicular traffic.



The district administration the other day removed hundreds of billboards installed across the city, particularly on the major arteries, for being put up with permission from the relevant department.

Addressing the protest participants, JUI-F leader Maulana Khairul Bashar claimed that the party gaining stronghold in the city scared the provincial government and was trying to sabotage an important event.

The JUI-F is holding major events celebrating the party’s 100 years in politics on April 8, 9 and 10 in Nowshehra. The event will be attended by clerics and other personalities from across the globe including Imam-e-Kaaba.

The protestors also rallied towards the chief minister house where they were stopped from entering the red zone.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 26^th, 2017.