Faisalabad fallout: Govt mishandled PTI protest, says Sirajul Haq

Says “the politics of jalao, gherao will lead to anarchy. This is not in the interest of the country.”

LAHORE:

The government mishandled the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf protest in Faisalabad. This caused widespread disruption, Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan chief Sirajul Haq said on Tuesday.

Addressing a convention held at Mansoora, he said that civilised societies did not tolerate the spilling of innocent blood. “However, in this country, dozens of people have become victims of violence and disturbance, but nobody seemed to have been disturbed. The country cannot afford disruption and chaos that can lead to tragedy,” he said.

He said that if the crisis continued, the country’s economy would suffer. “The politics of jalao, gherao will lead to anarchy. This is not in the interest of the country,” he said.

“The lack of tolerance among political parties and their differences resulted in the imposition of martial law in 1958, 1977 and 1999. The crisis has claimed the lives of 20 people so far. It is high time both sides honoured their commitment to resolve the situation through dialogue,” the JI chief said.

Haq said that after PTI chief Imran Khan had given up his demand for prime minister’s resignation, the government should have immediately set up the judicial commission. “The government has still time. The talks should resume,” he said. “The JI is trying to bring the two sides to the talks. However, certain elements are creating obstructions in the process. They are the kind of people who try to exploit killings,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 10^th, 2014.