Clerics demand release of Qadri

Hundreds of people marched from different parts of the metropolis on Wednesday to gather outside Minar-e-Pakistan from where they took out a rally towards Data Darbar, demanding immediate release of Mumtaz Qadri, the police guard who killed former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer over alleged blasphemy. The rally was organised by Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz (TNRM), a group of over two dozen Islamist parties, on the first anniversary of Taseer’s murder, which was participated by workers and supporters of all the component parties. The rally was led by TNRM president Allama Razaul Mustafa Naqshbandi and other leaders.
After the rally, a convention was held at Data Darbar where speakers warned of launching a coffin-clad march towards Islamabad if Qadri was not released honourably. They demanded the chief justice to intervene in the matter and decide Qadri’s case in accordance with the Islamic laws in the light of the Constitution of Pakistan. The resolutions passed by the convention demanded President Zardari to exonerate Qadri by using his presidential powers and punish blasphemer Aasia Bibi according to the law. They demanded enforcement of Nizam-e-Mustafa in the country, permanent closure of NATO supply and ordering US forces out of Pakistan. They asked the government to end price hike, unemployment and loadshedding of power and gas, a system of indiscriminate accountability to end corruption, arrest and punishment to the killers of Dr Sarfraz Naeemi, removal Qadiyanis from key posts and stopping them from preaching their faith, eradicate sense of deprivation from Baloch people and bring nationalists into mainstream politics by negotiating with them instead of pushing them to wall.
A resolution said a transparent inquiry should be held into memo scandal, while ruling class must end VIP culture by adopting simplicity. They said looted public money and written off loans should be recovered, and rulers must bring back their assets from foreign countries. Addressing the convention, Naqshbandi said according to Islamic laws laid down by Quran and Sunnah, Qadri was a hero, who punished Taseer for violating a law of Islam. TNRM Secretary General Muhammad Ali Naqshbandi said those demanding punishment to Qadri must bear in mind that the Muslims of Pakistan would not rest until his release. Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi said Muslims were facing another crusade and reminded the believers of the Quran’s proclamation that Jews and Christians could never be friends of Muslims. Raghib Naeemi said it was the time Sufis must come out of monasteries to purge the country of US agents and impure elements.
Dr Ashraf Asif Jalali said Qadri punished a blasphemer and not an ordinary person; therefore, all those conspiring against Qadri must keep in mind that Allah’s court was supreme over all worldly affairs. Pir Athar Qadri demanded arresting those who tried to assassinate Sunni Ittehad Council leader Fazal Kareem. Pir Yar Jan Saifi, Mujahid Abdul Rasool, Haseeb Qadri, Abdul Mustafa Hazarvi, Tahir Tabassum, Sardar Raza, Ahmad Ali Kasuri, Naeem Javed Noori, Arshad Naeemi, Mufti Imran, Ahmad Raza Sialvi, Pir Shafiq Ahmad, Sheikh Azhar, Allama Asghar and Zaheerul Hasan also spoke on the occasion.