Internal rifts: JITS split over supporting JI, JUI-F

JITS’s vice president alleged that Tayyeb’s support for JI is a personal decision.

PESHAWAR:

Fissures have appeared in the Jamiat Ishaat-e-Tauheed-wa-Sunnah (JITS) after Maulana Ashraf Ali, a senior leader, announced support for the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F).

The announcement came as a surprise since JITS chief Maulana Mohammad Tayyeb had earlier declared to support the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) in the 2013 elections. Ashraf, JITS’s vice president, alleged that Tayyeb’s support for JI was a personal decision and lacked the agreement of party members.

Addressing a press conference at the JUI-F provincial headquarters on Monday, Ashraf said the JUI-F was the real representative of the ulema. JUI-F provincial head Sheikh Amanullah and general secretary Maulana Mohammad Qasim were also present.

JITS spokesperson Hafiz Mohammad Sadiq said majority of the group’s leadership backs Maulana Ashraf and the issue will be raised in the shurah meeting. “It was Maulana Mohammad Tayyeb’s personal decision to support the JI and the group has nothing to do with it,” he said.

JITS, also known as Panj Pirs, have their stronghold in Panjpir, Swabi district, Maulana Tayyeb’s hometown. Until recently, the organisation was inactive in politics.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 23^rd, 2013.