After Osama Bin Laden library, another controversial building, Masjid Mumtaz Qadri, a mosque named after the killer of former Punjab governor Salman Taseer being built in Faizabad, an area near Islamabad.
The news started to spread when a tweet emerged on social media saying, “Meanwhile in Rawalpindi, Masjid Mumtaz Qadri being built near my home, public generously contributing!”
Below are some of the responses from nation’s famous twitterati:
Salman Taseer’s daughter Shehbano Taseer showed her abhorrence and said, “This is disgusting. There’s a Mumtaz Qadri mosque being buit in VIPGhouriTown in Faizabad (near Islambad).
Mehreen Zahra tweeted, “So there’s a Mumtaz Qadri mosque being built near Islamabad? Oh man. This country.”
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari’s youngest daughter Aseefa Bhutto Zardari also took to the social media to express her dislikeness towards it.
Pakistan’s first Oscar winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid expressed her disappointment saying, “After an Osama Bin Ladin library now a #mumtazqadri mosque! Islamabad area looks ripe for Fundo control!”
Fifi Haroon said, “As if lawyers showering petals on him wasn’t enough, there is now a Masjid Mumtaz Qadri being built near Ibd to honour Salman Taseer’s killer.
Zarrar Khuhro tweeted, ‘And then the Mumtaz qadri mosque and osama bin laden library lived happily ever after’.
Salman Taseer was assassinated in Islamabad by his own security guard Mumtaz Qadri, who disagreed with Taseer’s opposition to Pakistan’s blasphemy law. The assassination divided Pakistan, with many hailing Qadri as a hero. Mumtaz Qadri had confessed to murder.
Later, a Pakistani court found him guilty and sentenced him to death. There were also rumours that the judge who sentenced Mumtaz Qadri flew abroad amid death threats.
Rallies were orgainsed all over Pakistan against his sentence.
There are many others who consider it a national shame. Critics of the law say it can be used to persecute minority faiths and is sometimes exploited for grudges.