Seminary students rounded up: Clerics seek explanation behind raid

Reject police’s reason that they had received an intelligence report.

ABBOTABAD:

A number of religious leaders have threatened to go on protest if the district administration does not explain the reasons behind rounding up seminary students during a recent raid.

Three days back, Abbottabad police, headed by the district police officer, raided Darul Uloom Siddiqia in Mian de Seri village and arrested 30 students belonging to Battagram, Gilgit and Kohistan.

The next day, students and religious leaders from different seminaries of the district, staged a protest in front of the district coordination officer’s office, forcing the administration to release the detained students.

The police said that the action was taken in light of an intelligence report that stated that some students had links with banned outfits. However, the students were set free after being interrogated by the police and intelligence authorities.

Addressing a press conference on Friday, Maulana Shafiqur Rehman, Maulana Habibur Rehman, Maulana Altafur Rehman and Maulana Abdul Wahid condemned the raid, terming it a conspiracy to worsen the law and order situation. They said that the seminaries were registered, autonomous bodies.

They dubbed the raid as a sign of discrimination against students from Kohistan, Gilgit and Battagram. They demanded that the police give them a “proper” reason behind the raid within a week or they will stage protests.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2012.