IHC to hear petition requesting severance of diplomatic ties with the Netherlands

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court on Monday accepted a petition for hearing requesting severance of diplomatic ties with the Netherlands over the publication of blasphemous caricatures, Express News reported.



Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani heard the request. Advocate Mazhar Javaid presented arguments on the petitioner's behalf and said blasphemous caricatures have hurt the sentiments of Muslims worldwide.

The case will be heard on December 18.

Khadim Hussain Rizvi’s Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) had called for the expulsion of the Dutch ambassador as it launched a protest against a cartoon competition earlier in August.

Dutch anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders decided to cancel a controversial blasphemous caricatures contest after receiving death threats.

“The threats resulting from the cartoon contest are running out of control,” he had said.

TLP called off its protest march to Islamabad after Wilders’ announcement.



Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had requested TLP leaders to end the protest and disperse peacefully in the wake of the controversial competition’s cancellation.