Mufti Muneeb warns Govt against crackdown on Islamabad sit-in participants

Naimat Khan

KARACHI: Chairman Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee Pakistan, Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, has warned the central government of Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) against taking action against the participants of sit-in in Islamabad.

Federal Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Friday gave ultimatum to the participants of sit-in to disperse till Friday midnight otherwise action would be taken. Iqbal held news conference after the Court ordered authorities to clear protest that blocked a major highway into the capital Islamabad for the last 10 days.

The participants were, however, unmoved. Talking to media persons in Islamabad later, Ahsan Iqbal said that we are ready to hold dialogue with the organizers of the sit-in to resolve the matter peacefully due to which government has decided to extend the deadline for another 24 hours for the protesters who are staging sit-in in Islamabad.

In such a situation, Chairman of the moon sighting body and head of Tanzeem Ul Madaris Ahle Sunnat Pakistan, Mufti Muneeb Ur Rehman, held a news conference in Karachi, warning the federal government against taking strict action.

“A high powered committee should talk to those staging sit-in,” he urged the federal government while addressing presser. “The government should never think of stern action against the protestors,” he warned.

“We are aware of the problems faced by people due to sit-in by religious parties in Islamabad,” he said, adding that the sit-in and demands were, however, justified. The leadership of sit-in participants is happy with recent legislation regarding Khatm-e-Nabuwat, he informed. “The government has done right thing by introducing bill to restore the Khatm-e-Nabuwat law in its original status,” he said.

“Those who have participated in the sit-in are not political workers who can be lured by cash. They are the ones that are there in Islamabad due to their love for Prophet (SAW) and they believe in the finality of the Prophethood. That’s why the government should not think of taking action against them,” he said.

Mufti Muneeb also appealed to the participants of the Sit-in to adopt a middle way for resolving the issues. He complained that religious political parties don’t get proper coverage.