Lal Masjid cleric’s wife also booked in terror cases

The Kohsar police station has registered a complaint against Umme Hassan, the wife of Lal Masjid cleric Mauana Abdul Aziz, which includes multiple charges, include two sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

On Wednesday, Aziz and his followers opened fire on a team of the Counter-Terrorism Department near the seminary in the capital, stated the first information report (FIR) which was filed with a sub-inspector as the complainant.

While Aziz was able to escape, three of his accomplices were arrested. Following the incident, a contingent of students of the Jamia Hafsa blocked roads in the capital. Viral videos showed attacking women police constables with batons. The roads were cleared by the evening with the police not making any arrests.

The FIR alleges that Hassan resorted to provocation and hate-mongering in her interviews and messages to the media.

“…they (CTD) aren’t deserving of any sympathy. If you spot them, kill them whether they are in uniform or not. Even if they are not attacking you, still kill them,” she said in the video.

In her widely-shared video, Hassan had also urged the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan to “avenge” the attack on Aziz, noted the FIR.

The FIR against Hassan stated that through her statement, she had tried to sow discord and incite people to take law into their own hands and attack law enforcement personnel.

The FIR cites Section 7 of ATA, dealing with punishment for acts of terrorism. It also includes Section 11-W, which among other acts, applies to “printing, publishing, or disseminating any material to incite hatred” and Section 11-X, which deals with civil commotion.

The FIR also include five sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), include conspiracy to commit offences, criminal intimidation, wrongful restraint, rioting and unlawful assembly.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 24^th, 2023.