Khatm-e-Nabuwwat: Govt unlikely to give in to protesters’ demands

Party circles believe protest in Islamabad-Rawalpindi will die its own death

ISLAMABAD: The government has decided not to accept a religious group’s demand for sacking a senior cabinet member who reportedly changed a clause concerning Khatm-e-Nabuwwat, or the Finality of the Prophethood, from the Electoral Bill, 2017. The group is also demanding that an inquiry report to fix responsibility be also released.

“We will not take dictation,” a senior parliamentarian told The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity.

He was referring to the pressure being built by the religious group through a protest in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The protest, featuring road blockades, is disrupting life in the twin cities. The government is also being criticised for allowing the protesters to enter the cities in the first place.

An official, however, offered a justification for a largely passive approach by the government against the protesters. “These protests will die down. Let them die their own death. They cannot last long. All we have to do is to wait for them to fizzle. If we use force and try to disperse these people, we will also have to share the blame,” he said.

“We will not deal with them from a position of weakness either, because if we do that, it would allow others also to cash in on the situation,” said the government official.



“The issue [over the Khatm-e-Nabuwwat clause] has been settled… the mistake has been corrected and the bill has been restored to its original form. There is no need to remove the minister, especially since a small religious group just wants things to move their way,” he said.

According to other sources in the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif is in no mood to engage the protesters at any level amidst deep-rooted fears that the issue will add to problems that the government cannot afford at the moment.

“We are already facing too many challenges. Internal party differences, opposition to proposed legislation on delimitation of constituencies and court cases to name a few. Now dealing with a small group leniently would simply add to our woes. Public opinion has already turned against the protestors… we do not see any reason to relent,” said a PML-N leader.

Last month, Sharif, in his capacity as president of PML-N, set up a three-member committee to probe into the reasons behind the change in the wordings of the Khatm-e-Nabuwwat clause that was passed by the National Assembly. However, after heavy backlash, the government passed another bill through the NA to restore the clause to its original form.

The inquiry committee was headed by PML-N chairperson and Leader of the House in Senate Raja Zafarul Haq, with Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Climate Change Minister Mushahidullah as its members.



According to sources, the inquiry has found that the responsibility for the change lies with a single individual, however no action has been recommended against him. In fact, it has been left to Sharif’s discretion to take whatever action he deems appropriate.

According to PML-N officials, the inquiry panel questioned over a dozen people on the issue, including three senior PML-N leaders and nine NA Secretariat officials. The three PML-N leaders included a federal minister, a state minister and a special assistant, who has the status of a minister.

The Express Tribune also learnt that initially Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif wanted to take action against the accused for the change that embarrassed the government but they were advised against it, since it would only reignite an issue that had been settled. This concern was one of the main reasons for the elder Sharif not to approve the report while also not making it public.

Sharif has recently discussed the issue in detail with the PML-N leadership in Islamabad and Lahore but has kept mum about it owing to the sensitivities attached to the matter, knowledgeable circles believe.