Contrary to what the religious political circles want, hostilities between Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal group (JUI-F) are on the rise so much the so that they are not only criticizing each other in public but also giving negative remarks and using abusive language against each other.
Both these parties were elected to the last parliament and their members served as ministers under the banner of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), a group of some religious political parties that supported dictator Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s government.
Leaders of both JI and JUI-F have addressed public meetings at Upper Dir on Sunday last where according to the local people the speakers crossed all limits while leveling allegations and criticizing each other’s leadership. Similar is the position of gatherings and events being arranged by leaders of both the parties in connection with the next general elections.
The JI Upper Dir chapter organized its gathering at Jamia Masjid Bazaar Dir which was attended by its workers and stalwarts from all over the area. Beside others, party’s provincial chief Prof Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, ex-MNA Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali and Sahibzada Faseeh Ullah addressed the gathering.
On the other hand, the JUI-F Upper Dir chapter has organized a public meeting at village Mataka, situated a few kilometers away from Dir Bazaar. Senator Maulana Gul Nasib Khan, JUI-F Deputy Parliamentary leader in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Mufti Kifayat Ullah and Inaam Ullah Khan addressed the audience. Inam Ullah Khan, a diehard activist and former president of Pakistan Muslim League Youth Wing, has recently joined JUI-F, causing unrest amongst the JI stalwarts. Inam Ullah Khan belongs to an influential family whereas his father late Aman Ullah Khan was the only one who gave tough time to JI in the region from 1985 till 1997 last.
The JI leaders have held none other than JUI-F leader Maulana Fazal Ur Rehman responsible for the disintegration of MMA. In fact, they said that JUI-F leaders were much more interested in government offices, privileges and perks rather than attempting to enforce Islamic Sharia in the country. In this respect, they even listed out charges and allegations against the JUI-F leaders and parliamentarians.
In response, the JUI-F leaders, while criticizing their counterparts from JI, said that they were responsible for damaging the image of Islam. “The JI leaders and stalwarts are following the policies dictated to them by secret agencies,” they remarked, adding that the party was responsible for making America a superpower in the world. They said that JI leaders wanted to get top offices in the future government after the revival of MMA. How it was possible for JUI-F to give superior position to a party which had existence only in a few districts, they asked. In this respect, they referred to the defeat of Maulana Fazal Ur Rehman from his native Dera Ismael Khan district in 2008 general elections.
This game of leveling allegations and the use of abusive language against each other would make it hard for the leaders of both JI and JUI-F to sit together in MMA or any other alliance of religious parties. Some in the JUI-F even confirmed that they in principal were opposing any sort of alliance or seat-to-seat adjustment with the JI in any part of the country.
To make the matters more interesting, instead of striving for the revival of MMA, JI’s top leadership is advocating for election alliances with PML-N and PTI.
