Maulana Fazl castigates govt over Atif Mian nomination fiasco

PTI is a burden on Pakistan, says MMA chief

BANNU: Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the chief of his eponymous faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, came down hard on the PTI government on Saturday accusing it of promoting “vulgarities on the dictates of the West”.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has promised to make Pakistan a welfare state modeled on the first Islamic state of Madina. “How can we expect a state modeled on Madina from a party which is rooted in Western civilisation! It’s contemptuous on their part to talk about the state of Madina,” said the cleric while addressing a gathering in Bannu.

Maulana Fazl, who is also the chief of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal – an electoral alliance of politico-religious parties, couldn’t win his home constituency in the June 25 election. He was fielded by opposition parties minus PPP in the presidential election against PTI’s Arif Alvi, but he lost by a huge margin.



The cleric reiterated his allegation that the PTI had come to power through rigging, while the MMA had the mandate of the people. “It’s not just the MMA, all the parties are saying that the elections were massively rigged,” he added.

The Maulana said: “Jihad becomes mandatory against anyone who takes anti-Islam steps. The PTI is a burden on the country. It is misleading our new generation, but we will put them on the right path.”

Referring to a recent controversy triggered by the appointment of Dr Atif Mian, who belongs to the minority Ahmadiyya community, on the government’s Economic Advisory Council, the JUI-F leader said: “An Ahmadi who works for the West was given charge to bring about economic reform.”



Directly addressing Premier Imran, the cleric said, “If you want to build a Pakistan for Ahmadis, it would happen over our dead bodies.”

"The Ahmadis have no space as long as Ulema are in the assemblies,” he said. “We know why this Economic Advisory Council has been set up. We oppose this council which wants to influence our economy with Jewish ways,” he added. “This is not the Pakistan that the Quaid-e-Azam had envisioned. This is revolt against his vision.”

The cleric lamented the treatment meted out to the students of Islamic seminaries.

“The Madrassahs are being accused of producing terrorists, while Ulema are being arrested for collecting animal hides,” he said and warned that “if this [trend] persists, the government’s days will be numbered.”