Allowing extremists to hijack Pakistan

Religious right having a field day with PML-N’s blessings

The Muslim League which takes pride in being the creator of Pakistan is gradually surrendering its legacy to religious parties, thus providing space to those who opposed the creation of Pakistan. At the three gatherings organized by them on March 23 speakers talked about ‘enforcement of Sharia’ and ‘Pakistan Ideology’, terms that find no place in the Lahore Resolution or the papers of the Quaid spread over hundreds of published pages.

The ‘Message of Peace Conference’ organized by Wafaqul Madaris in Karachi made the preposterous claim that the seminaries were repositories of Pakistan’s ideology and a force that guarded the ideological and geographical borders of the country. The government was warned that any curbs on them would be resisted with full force. In other words the madrassas are to be considered a state within a state and none dare interfere in their activities.

Jamaat e Islami which not only opposed the demand for Pakistan but also poked fun on the appearance, lifestyle and moderate views of the All India Muslim League leaders held ‘Tahaffuz e Shariat Conference’ in Karachi on March 23. It maintained that it shared the views of its Taliban ‘brothers’ on Sharia though it wanted its enforcement though peaceful means. The speakers warned Sharif against improving relations with India.

A similarly outrageous claim was made at the so-called ‘Revival of Pakistan Ideology March’ organized by Jamaat ud Dawah where speakers compared Hafiz Saeed with Jinnah, maintaining that while Jinnah was the leader of the Muslims before 1947, Hafiz Saeed led the community today. Nothing could be more farcical than the comparison of a highly enlightened parliamentarian, strongly believing in democracy, modernity, rule of law and who created a nation state with a cleric having a primitive outlook, and considers democracy a conspiracy against Islam and wants to replace it with Khilafa. Like Jamaat e Islami, the JuD chief also strongly rejected friendship and trade with India, which he termed Pakistan’s eternal enemy. Muslim majority states in India like Kashmir and Bengal, he said, would be amalgamated in Pakistan in the days to come. A PML-N MNA paid glowing tributes to Hafiz Saeed at the rally.

While the participation of Nawaz Sharif in Pakistan Day celebrations remained confined to the presidency, the religious organisations stole the day by holding marches, rallies and public gatherings. They freely propagated views that negated the concept of Pakistan as enunciated by Jinnah. The extremists who want Pakistan to be turned into a violent state perennially at war against its neighbours had a field day on March 23. The handling of Taliban with kid gloves by Ch Nisar indicates there are elements in the PML-N having a soft corner for extremism. The government’s patronage of religious parties allows them to spread hatred against other religions and neighbouring countries that makes society intolerant on the one hand and isolates Pakistan internationally on the other.