ISLAMABAD: An FIR against Lal Masjid cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz was lodged at the Aabpara police station on Friday, three hours after protesters had gathered outside it.
The FIR was lodged under Section 506 (II) of the PPC, against criminal intimidation.
The FIR against Abdul Aziz filed by Civil Society under Section 506(2) The onus is on State now. We will #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/5GWkHY0gb0
— M. Jibran Nasir 🇵🇸 (@MJibranNasir) December 19, 2014
A large crowd had gathered outside Lal Masjid on Friday evening, following on from a similar vigil on Thursday evening. Soon they were joined by political leaders including Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Senator Tahir Hussain Mashadi, Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) Nafeesa Shah, Awami National Party’s (ANP) Bushra Gohar and Acting President of National Party Senator Mir Hasil Bizenjo.
As the crowd outside Lal Masjid swelled, they moved towards the Aabpara police station. Officials stopped them from entering the station but an application for registering an FIR against Maulana Aziz was filed. The protesters camped outside the police station, refusing to disperse till the report was registered.
Heavy contingents of police, some in riot gear, were deployed outside the station to avoid any untoward incident.
Earlier on Friday, Nasir put forth his charter of demands and explained why he was leading protest.
Speaking to The Express Tribune, the independent candidate who contested elections from the NA-250 constituency claimed he is protesting to ‘reclaim our mosques back from extremists.’
“Maulana Abdul Aziz lives in the heart of Islamabad and has been allowed to validate the extremist narrative for a decade now,” Nasir said.
“We should never forget,” Nasir urged sternly, adding, the sacrifices of Peshawar should never be erased from our memories and we should stand up and take action against the extremists.
Urging all arm-chair activists to stand up, Nasir said the blame lies on every citizen’s head, “The children who were killed in Peshawar, you and I have killed them. When in Hangu, a suicide bomber was entering the school and Aitzaz Hasan saved them, did we not know students are on the hit-list of Taliban?”
Through a powerful video posted on his Facebook page, Nasir said the reason for the protest is simple and even if the police tries to cordon them off, they will not create violence but will not be stopped either.
“Our chants will be so loud, they’ll be heard till Lal Masjid,” he said.
Concluding his video, Nasir said, “We demand justice and request all political parties to stand up with us to send a message: We will not forget.”
Seminary students also protest
After members of civil society had held a vigil outside Lal Masjid on Thursday evening, a large number of students from the seminary and its affiliate madrassas held a protest rally against civil society activists, as well as the Peshawar carnage after Friday prayers in Islamabad.
While addressing the charged gathering, Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) spokesperson Maulana Abdul Rehman Moavia said that students of Lal Masjid had gathered to condemn the Peshawar attack but there is also the need for condemning drone attacks.
“We should also condemn Bajaur and Hangu drone attacks, which left 14 children dead,” he said. “Why the people have not reprimanded Lal Masjid massacre in the same way, he asked.
He warned civil society members that if they tried to launch a protest in front of the mosque, they will have to face severe resistance from the students of the mosque.
COMMENTS (52)
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@Observer: well ,your answer sure shows how educated you are and what your forefather taught you.Keep believing conspiracy theories to your heart's content.As if US has come in to occupy Afghanistan forever.And it also shows how your said engineers and professional are.It is uys like you with Taliban in their heart that have gotten you into the mess,and if people like you persist,mess will not go away.
@cmann: Please go ahead and fight terrorism to your hearts content. US has spent over US$4 trillion and 13 years fighting it but could not end the WOT. Now that since 80% of US forces have evacuated AF, they have successfully managed to out sourced their war to Pakistan. The people whom you blame to be coming up with the so called conspiracy theories are competent engineers and professional with more experience and education than your forefathers. Any person with a grain of intellect can figure out what they are saying, but it's the anal fixed - brainless farts like you who have got us into this mess and will keep toeing the terrorism narrative without understanding the geo-politics. Thanks!
@Observer: Keep dreaming,while mullah-incited terrorism keeps killing Pakistanis.Conspiracy theories have become the ruin of Pakistan,and as long as people like you keep spinning them,more Pakistanis will be killed by the mullahs.
@Aysha M - You nailed it.
Real Ulema stance:
https://www.facebook.com/binoriamedia
Why is the media not showing this? Why show Abdul Aziz when he does not represent anyone?
Dear Friends, before I begin let me tell you that I fully condemn the Peshawar attack on children. I do not represent any political party nor I have affiliation with any religious party. I am writing as a Pakistani. Let me take you 26 years back (some of you were not even born then). As we know Taliban were created by CIA and ISI to fight a proxy war with the Soviets. After Soviets left Afghanistan in 1988, Taliban ruled in Afghanistan till 9/11. US blamed OBL for the 9/11 attacks, where as OBL denied. US asked Taliban to hand-over OBL which they denied and asked for hard evidence of OBL's involvement, where as we dropped our pants for US without any hard evidence because they threatened us and also we didn't want India to provide airbases to US. There has been 18,000 to 20,000 Afghan civilian deaths (Wikipedia) during the American occupation till date, of which many are women and children. 9/11 has been termed as an inside job by many US engineers who believe that the aircrafts could not bring the building down alone and it was a controlled demolition. There are many evidences available on the internet. Similarly, the US government's pretext of WMDs to launch offensive on Iraq was also fake as no WMDs were recovered, after destroying Iraq the pretext was simply brushed off as intelligence failure. My question to you is "what if" 9/11 pretext is fake? Then of course we are responsible for the deaths of 18,000 to 20,000 civilians (including women and children) in Afghanistan and our FATA region.
One can judge the complicity of Nawaz and his coterie with Taliban from this. A Taliban Hideout exists in the heart of Islamabad with burqa molvi Aziz threatening the protesters. Ch Nisar and Nawaz Sharif are protecting him and that is why Lowlife like Ejazul haq has was inducted in the Committee who is also a follower of Burqa molvi. They should all be arrested immediately.
Jibran Nasir for PM 2018!
Government should monitor mosque and madrassa activities. proper trained staff should be injected in both areas who can change this mind set.
This man in 2007 boasted that he had over 600 people who would be willing to act as suicide bombers
@Jibran: Why are you even expecting these closet Taliban to show up in a protest against their own. In my view, the leaders and supporters of these parties represent the rot within as they were at the forefront of the campaign against Mush in his quest to rid this country from these animals for their own vested interests.
FYI, another FIR against Mulla Burqa was also lodged in Ferozeabad PS in Karachi yesterday. I salute the brave citizens of this country! We should not let our collective short-term memories lead us down the path of destruction again and let us not lower our voices against these stone-age barbarians and their sympathizers till we have cleansed this country from every last one of them!
Is it a surprise that not a single PTI or PMLN parliamentarian showed up?
Don't know what others think, but writing Maulana with any name is a big thing and to me it must not be used for these kind of persons. God Bless Pakistan.
Mushy was a coward who did not support our brave soldiers and let the media and others to malign our army. He allowed Lal Masjid to operate within days and did not punish Mullah Aziz and other terrorists who martyred our brave soldiers. Thank God we have General Raheel and not a coward like Musharaf during these crucial times.
We must reclaim our masjid from these terrorist supporter mullahs. and yes, hanging them is also must for supporting criminals who have killed our children.
Mosques should be used for prayers only and closed after prayers. Madrasa and seminaries should be separate entity....Mosques and madrasa should be controlled by auqaf and teaching staff be examined for their qualifications. Sames goes with the Mulla leading prayers..
Well done people. Finally we woke up. Lets eradicate him and all of his kind from our society.
@Rameez...just FYI Jibran is a lawyer by profession...I think technically the FIR may not be strong but its an important pressure tactic...I think the aim is to use it as a catalyst to trigger events that may lead to the downing of Abdul Aziz
Considering the last line of the article I demand for another Laal masjid operation
I just watched Jibraan's video with a sinking heart. The fog of anger and rage clouding our minds for last three days is now clearing up - we murdered our own children. It was our neglect, apathy, burning desire for revenge which blinded us for last 40 years...we let our children down. We are a poor country, but we can still feed and educate our children - no poor parent should have to send their child to madrassa. If we cut back on our big ticket denfence purchases for few years, we can easily educate the most vulnerable of our children.
I wholeheartedly support this protest. Sad that it took the lives of so many of our sons to jolt this nation. Musharraf was right all along, and now I see Gen. Sharif is of the same no nonsense mindset. I especially appreciate the political parties that came out to support this protest. Bravo to them. Where is PTI? Shame on IK. I support his political campaign but he is totally wrong on terrorism and diametrically opposite where the nation is.
The government MUST dismiss the Lal Masjid case against Musharraf immediately.
We should pass laws to BAN all hate speech, make it punishable by death if conducted from the pulpit of a mosque. And allow submission of bona fide video evidence to prosecution. All Mullahs working for the government should be confined to a scripted speeches, issued by an independent board with a goal to ensure commitment to moderation, education, tolerance and modernity.
The protestors have shown courage in confronting supporters of terrorism. Please keep up your protest until every religious cleric and politician denounces violence, and supports peace.
Though I am not a lawyer but believe me the FIR registered against Lal Masjid cleric, I am reading the content of this FIR, to me this is so much vague and weak FIR and the man who got acquitted in the murder cases and in treason cases, this FIR is nothing more than a paper for him, I urge the civil society to keep their protest outside the mosque till he doesn't come out to condemn the TTP. And as far as this FIR is concerned the very first question to come from the judge would be, that why you went to protest outside Lal Masjid, and if anyone says we went because of the cruel statements from Moulana than obviously the judge will reply where the Moulana committed crime against you or anyone, because a Mulla in Pakistan has got all the freedom to express anything and even by not condemning TTP, he just exercised his freedom of expression, I hope many of you won't like my observation and I might face criticism but this is the reality of the prevailing judicial system of Pakistan. And also if the complainant is not a resident of Karachi & he went to ISB to register protest against the Lal Masjid, this is also a negative point in this FIR.
This is only step one........his supporters in Parliament the PML-N, PPP, JI and JUI-F all will work behind the scenes to protect him.....they did it in the past and will do it again. Only public pressure will bring justice......well done civil society.
All Mullahs should be made to give an Oath of Allegiance to PAKISTAN.
They should also be made to promise not to spread hate, and protect minorities.
This should be backed by a Rs25 lakh bond, which is immediately payable if they breach their promise.
All Mullah's should have to get a licence if they want to preach.
At least the children's sacrifices are not going in vain.
Jibran Nasir I am as proud of you as if you were my son. May this country have hundreds of sons aand daughters each as right thinking and as courageous as you. All of you brave people standing tall against evil, a grateful nation prays for you and your cause.
Ulema everywhere should be made aware that enough is enough. They have rewrtitten the narrative that drove Islam to greatness to serve their own warped sense of what it means to be Muslim so that anyone challenging their "authority" is automatically labelled a kafir by them. They along with our self serving politicians have toyed with the people of Pakistan for long enough and it is time to call them to account.
National Action Plan against terrorism must include reform of madrassa's...failing which we will only be kicking the can down the road...waiting for another tragedy like Peshawar. All madrassas must be registered and approved by the government, and their curriculum must be scrutinized. All funding for madrassas must be accounted for and made transparent. Funding from extremist sources must be block. All madrassas must be evaluated by government and those failing to abide by the rules be put on probabtion and taken over by the government.
Excellent work... this cleric should be in Jails... sympathizers of terrorists are terrorists and should have absolutely no place in Pakistan!
Jibran : I am coming from overseas to join you guys. And I request all overseas Pakistanis to raise their voice against this menace in any way possible. This is the time. If you could do it for IK dharnas, this is a far, far bigger cause. Atleast speak up for your children this time. We have to push back these animals in disguise of human beings.
Cool !!!
So what has been done so far for the Christian couple that was burnt alive? For the killings of children in Hazara by LeJ? Wasn't it necessary to take vigilant actions against barbaric crimes or do we only wake when blood spills on our door step? Are we still numb as a society?
All the conspirators including GEO/Jang and ex CJ against Musharraf are now hiding their faces. Musharraf Zindabad.
Mushi the great. Missing you badly.
Bravo Jibran! Musharraf was right all along! Very soon, the true citizens of Pakistan shall redeem the nation and terrorists and clerics who support them will be taken to task! We must purge all seminaries of the radical element as they are the breeding grounds for terrorists!
Islamabad administration must takeover the premises of Lal Masjid back in its control and expel the controversial mulla out. This masjid is a public property and the Mulla and his madrasa should not be allowed to take the control back.
Such a virtuous ideology to "reclaim our mosques back from extremists". I am so pleased with it. If we have such a vigorous civil society, our future will be bright. Keep it up.
Had the nation supported the decision of President Musharraf to eliminate lal Masgid from terrorists we would have not seen this day.Dont give up until Lal masjid is cleared from the terrorists group.
Finally !!! If we manage to shut down this terror centre in the centre of Pakistan and get Mula Burka arrested... trust me this will be all over the country and Insha Allah the country will soon be liberated in real terms. Be Brave and stand up !!! This is only the start dont let it go in vain.
Civil society is 40 years too late, The protest should have been organized in 1974 when religion was brought in public domain and the nation was led down the hate path and the state initiated extremism slowly started to turn the country into the sectarian sty,it is today
Yes the Lal Masjid’s controversial cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz must be arrested, along with hanging of terrorists currently on the death roll. Otherwise these Children have died in vain. Lets come out on the street and demand elimination of all types of terrorist. No more fiddling with any Terrorist. Enough is Enough!!
At last Pakistan has found its tongue. Its heart is in the right place. At last sanity and wisdom have found their voice. Kudos.
Musharraf stands fully vindicated. Where are his detractors now ?????????????? Musharraf Zindabad
I saw Jibran's video, he was speaking my heart. This is right time to stand against religious extremism, its never too late.
Self proclaimed clerics like Aziz need to be executed publicy for supporting the terrorists. How can anyone expect any sanity from a man who wore a Burka to escape rather than face our jawans.
How sad it is that countless children of ours, sweet innocent children, had to give up their lives to finally awaken this nation from its slumber to eradicate the menace of Taliban. And to take to task the citizenry that has been supporting this evil.
Very Well! This should have been done long time ago! Lets see how his sympathizers coming to his assistance. I Don't believe anything coming from TTP. First, their are the biggest liar who have guts to justify their ruthlessness. First they kill innocent shoppers, Masjid goers, shriners, religious minorities, public leaders, polio workers, young girls and boys in thousands, police and pak army men. Kidnap for ransom, rob banks, jewelry stores and homes...then when we warn & retaliate, they tell us, "Oh, Actually we are taking revenge". Cut the cra.., please. They are being protected by outside powers who feed them these lines to broadcasts for reverse sympathy. They are covering their innocence for public sympathy to save their terrorist brothers and THEIR LEADER MULLAH FAZLULLAH! We are at you tail Fazlu! You can RUN but you CANT HIDE!
God bless!!