‘Selfie’ cleric backs April Fool’s Day

Mufti Abdul Qavi says there is no harm in celebrating the day so long as the joke does not hurt anyone

MULTAN: As hoax news and rumours relating to April Fool’s Day made rounds on social media, a cleric in Multan issued a fatwa (religious decree) supporting observance of the day.

Mufti Abdul Qavi, a prominent cleric and former member of Ruet-i-Hilal Committee issued a religious decree saying "news which brings joy, happiness and smiles on the faces of dejected souls can be brought forth as people do on the first of April every year."

"There were messages and news about the third marriage of Pakistan Tehreeke- Insaaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's engagement, the marriage of Sheikh Rasheed, the Panama case verdict being out, and the inclusion of Shah Mahmood Qureshi in Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which went viral on social media," he explained.



Qavi went on to add that these rumours had been floating around for a long time anyway, everyone took them with a pinch of salt, and they made people smile. "Such news provides an opportunity to the people to have a good time during their tense and busy routine of life," he added.

There is no harm in celebrating April Fool's Day so long as the joke does not hurt anyone, the mufti concluded.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2017.