Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif presided over a meeting of the Punjab Quran Board (PQB) on Wednesday to discuss the PQB reforms.
Addressing the meeting, the Chief Minister said besides printing and publishing the Holy Quran, the PQB should also highlight Islamic teachings to promote a system of peace, tolerance, equality and justice in the society. He said the decision of the High Court with regard to printing of Holy Quran should be implemented strictly and an effective system of monitoring should be evolved for the purpose. He directed to finalise the rules of the PQB within a day or two and added that negotiations must be held with factories engaged in recycling over the disposal of old and torn out holy pages. He said the government would consider installing its own recycling plants in the long-run. He also directed to form a delegation headed by the Auqaf Minister Auqaf and comprising clerics belonging to all schools of thought who would visit Iran, Saudi Arabia and Egypt and submit recommendations on printing and publication of Holy Quran and disposal of old and torn out holy pages. A comprehensive strategy would be evolved in the light of these recommendations, he said, ensuring full cooperation from government in this regard. Shehbaz also directed the communication and works secretary to take immediate steps for completing the PQB building and give a briefing over this within the next few days. Provincial Minister for Auqaf Ehsaanuddin Qureshi, Chairman Punjab Quran Board Allama Ahmad Ali Kasuri, Chairman Muttehida Ulema Board Pir Aminul Hasnaat Shah and members Mufti Raghib Hussain Naeemi, Maulana Nazim-ud-Din, Abdul Ghafoor Raashid, Syed Ahsan Mehmood and Secretary Auqaf attended the meeting.
