Fazl slams 'efforts to divide ulema'

Persisting in his push for the madrassa registration bill, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday condemned efforts to set religious scholars at odds, asserting that such attempts to sow discord will fail.

Addressing students at Jamia Islamia - the main seminary of Rawalpindi Cantonment in Saddar near Kamran Market that belongs to the Deoband school of thought - the cleric-politician criticised opponents of religious seminaries for their weak moral, constitutional and legal stance.

"The strategy of setting scholars against each other will not succeed. All scholars are brothers, and unity is our strength," he stressed. "These attempts are not just misguided but doomed from the start."

The JUI-F chief further expressed confidence that seminaries would weather the storm, despite current challenges. "Indeed, times are tough for seminaries, but with Allah's help, we will emerge victorious.

Those who oppose these institutions are destined to fail," he added.

Lauding the efforts of Ittehad-e-Tanzeemat-Madaris, the JUI-F chief stressed the importance of bringing together scholars from different schools of thought. "We've united various sects on one platform," he urged.