CII scholar defends EAC appointment

Suggests people to keep religious tenets in mind while resorting to hate speech

ISLAMABAD: A senior religious scholar, attached with the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), came to the rescue of the government over a controversial appointment, saying that there was no harm in appointing an Ahmedi to assist the prime minister on economic matters.

However, he said, it would have been better if the person had been hired privately, instead of an official appointment.

“By doing this, the PTI government is losing its support base,” he said.

Defending the appointment, he said that Dr Atif R Mian had been appointed as a member of the Economic Advisory Council and Islam did not forbid appointing members of minorities on such technical posts.



“Currently the criticism … over the appointment of Dr Atif R Mian of Princeton University (Department of Economics and Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy), to the 18-member EAC that advises the government on economic policy matters, is completely senseless and illogical,” he maintained.

He said that Islam only prohibited appointing members of minorities on key posts.

According to him, the only reason behind the harsh criticism faced by the government over his appointment was basically “sentiments attached to Qadiyanis”.

“Such negative attitude … only defames Islam and promotes religious extremism and intolerance,” he said.

He further suggested people to keep religious tenets in mind while resorting to hate speech and negative campaigns on social media.