‘Religious scholars ready to play their role in controlling violence’

Ulema council’s representative pays a visit to MQM headquarters, talks to party chief.

KARACHI: Religious scholars are ready to do whatever it takes to maintain peace in the city, said All Pakistan Ulema Council chairperson Allama Tahir Ashrafi, during his visit to Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) headquarters at Nine Zero on Thursday.

Ashrafi had earlier attended a closed door meeting with MQM leaders, including Nasreen Jalil, Rauf Siddiqui, Anis Ahmed Qaimkhani and others. He also spoke to MQM chief Altaf Hussain on the phone during the meeting. Hussain said that he wanted all political parties in the country to join hands with the military and agree on a joint plan of action to tackle terrorism.



The MQM chief added that the situation cannot improve by prayers only, and practical steps need to be taken. “The army has made many sacrifices for the country. Now is the time [for us] to unite and defeat terrorism,” he told the religious scholar.

Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Ashrafi declared that Khilafat-e-Rashida, or the caliphate system, is the only way to get justice for the poor. He said that there was a need for Adl-e-Haidery and Nizaam-e-Farooqi to root out sectarian violence in the city. People will not be able to get justice from feudal rulers who are running the country, he said.



“If Altaf bhai starts a movement for implementing Khilafat-e-Rashida in the country, every religious institution would support him,” Ashrafi said. Flanked by MQM leaders, the cleric said that many seminary students and religious scholars have been gunned down in the city in the past month alone. However, only Altaf Hussain raised his voice against these incidents, he said.

“Peace in the city is not possible without the MQM, and those who think otherwise are simply playing with the feelings of the people.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2012.