The issue of Jamia Hafsa’s rebuilding has finally been resolved amicably as the district administration Thursday agreed to allot 20 kanals of land in Sector-H/11 for rebuilding the women’s seminary, a research centre and a hostel.
The issue remained a cause of stand-off between administration of Red Mosque (Lal Masjid) and the district administration as the former was insisting to rebuild the seminary on its previous site. Jamia Hafsa was razed to the ground after a bloody military operation in 2007.
Last Friday, a large number of burqa-clad women led by Umm-e-Hissan, the wife of chief cleric Maulana Aziz, had assembled at the site of destroyed seminary and announced that they would rebuild the seminary there at any cost.
They were of the view that Supreme Court in 2007 had directed the administration to reconstruct the seminary but they administration was delaying the matter. Later, the mosque’s chief cleric, Maulana Aziz, announced to start the construction work on December 30 (today) at its previous place. The district administration was reluctant to allow administration of Lal Masque to rebuild seminary at its previous site fearing the construction of Jamia Hafsa at its old place would keep reminding its students of the bloody operation.The ICT administration had been offering various plots to the mosque administration, but the chief cleric remained stuck to its stance. On Thursday, however, a four-member committee constituted by Interior Minister Rehman Malik managed to convince Maulana Aziz for the construction of Jamia Hafsa in Sector H/11 instead.
An agreement was signed between city’s chief commissioner and administration of Lal Mosque and it was decided that a 20 kanal piece of land would be allotted for construction of seminary.
“The federal government, through Islamabad chief commissioner, has agreed to provide 20 kanals of land in Sector-H/11/4 in Islamabad, for the seminary’s construction, a research centre and a hostel for the students of Jamia Hafsa in lieu of the land previously being used for the seminary, adjacent to the Markazi Jamia Masjid (Lal Masjid) Sector-G/6, Islamabad,” said the agreement.
It was deiced that Red Mosque administration would use the entire land 250,56 sq.yds, previously being used for Jamai Hafsa, adjacent to Lal Masjid, G-6, solely as a prayer ground of Markazi Jamia Masjid, G/6 Islamabad. It was also decided that the mosque administration would not use this land for any other purposes, institutional or residential. According to the agreement, after allotment of the said 20 kanals land, the administration of Lal Masjid would not claim any further monetary or land compensation in whatsoever nature, form or plea, in future regarding this issue. After striking the deal, Maulana Abdul Aziz, while addressing a press conference here, expressed his gratitude for the ICT administration for amicably resolving the matter.