Scholars urge govt to reopen seminaries

Wafaq-ul-Madaris assures SOPs compliance to prevent virus spread

PESHAWAR: Religious scholars and representatives of seminaries in the country on Thursday urged the government to hold a dialogue on reopening madrassas, adding that they were ready to strictly abide by the standard operating procedures (SOPs) already prescribed.

An emergency meeting of the umbrella body of seminaries in the country, the Wafaq-ul-Madaris, was held at the Jamia Islamia for Bannin and Banat Sharifabad in Mardan. It was chaired by its Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Nazim Maulana Hussain Ahmed.

Addressing the meeting, Maulana Ahmed said that seminaries were among the most affected by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

He added that scholars had fully supported the government when it asked to implement a lockdown, including curbing prayer congregations which happen five times a day.

However, he lamented that those who had cooperated the most with the government had been disregarded the most, he said.

Terming the government's attitude towards Ulema as hostile, Maulana Ahmed said that the lockdown would not have been possible without their cooperation.

Later, a joint statement issued after the meeting said that managements of seminaries were ready to comply with the SOPs.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29^th, 2020.