“What sort of a message does the Punjab government want to give by bringing women on roads like this? We will definitely protest recorded tomorrow, now that we have decided to stand up to them.” Muhammad Ali Naqshbandi, the General Secretary TNRM told The Express Tribune.
Naqshbandi added that, “This practice of women running is against Quran and Sunnah, women are not even allowed to walk fast around Ka’aba.”
The TNRM had staged a small protest against the marathon in front of Lahore High Court on Saturday as well. Allama Raza-e-Mustafa Naqshbandi, President TNRM will lead the Sunday protests.
Several religious parties and organisations of the Sunni school of thought subscribe to the TNRM. Naqshbandi says that the TNRM will not riot, promising that the protests will be peaceful. However, he pointed out that they would stage their protest at a location which intersects the route of the race. This location had not been finalised till the filing of this report.
A number of women are due to participate in the 3.5 kilometer Family Fun Race as part of the Punjab Sports Festival 2012. Families will run from Siddiq Trade Center to Liberty Chowk on the Main Boulevard in Gulberg.
The office of Deputy Punjab Assembly Speakier Rana Mashood, coincidently the chairman of the festival’s organising committee, said that “this is a family race being organised to perpetrate the message of peace, because people of Punjab have dealt with terrorism and this will encourage them to step out and enjoy outdoor spaces. This race should not be taken negatively.”
Another race part of the festival is the 17 kilometer Punjab Marathon Race for men. This will run a different route from the shorter family fun race.
In 2005, religious parties had protested and manhandled women participants of the marathon organised in Lahore.
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Please ask Muhammad Ali Naqshbandi, the General Secretary TNRM to be in touch with me so I can explain the merits of women in sports.
@Waqas.. You like Western Culture.... Why don't you go over there?
It has been an excellent event orgainzed in Lahore and it was rather a surprise to see few bearded men in Shalwar Kameez participating in that Marathon too so that they would definitely loose some weight today. I suggest that we should support this kind of sporting activities rather creating chaos in useless protests.
Thats why islamic Pakistan is never a good idea, coz then we have to stick to the stupid rules!
@talha imran: Coz they know one woman with chappal in her hand is mightier than dozens of them.
@s shah: They are already sitting in our homes and telling us what to eat and what not to eat.
another news in todays newspaper is "Muzaffargarh ‘revenge’ plot: 10 women stripped, one paraded naked"... the mullahs should go and protest that "bay-hurmatti" or innocent women, and having the administration bring the perpetrators to justice,instead of wasting there time here. It will serve Islam better too.
What running has to do with religion.......? and if it has to do anything with religion then what is religion?
So women don't deserve to run just because mullah can't control their libido?
They just want to stage a protest in the route of the marathon so they can ogle at women.
Is this a joke?!
'Naqshbandi added that, “This practice of women running is against Quran and Sunnah, women are not even allowed to walk fast around Ka’aba.”
I agree with with S. Shah.
This is supposed to be a family race. Are these people trying to suggest women are not part of the family? How can you have a family race without women in it? Why not just call it a men's race then?
What is wrong with these people? Why is everything related to women such a huge problem? If it was up to these guys they would just lock women in their homes and never let them out.
Why do the religious people fear women so much?
The more one appeases the mullahs, the worse they become. Pretty soon they will be sitting in our homes, telling us what to eat!