And his sudden appearances
Suddenly Tahirul Qadri has recalled that despite the passage of two years justice has not been done to PAT activists killed ruthlessly on June 17. He has given a call for a rally followed by a sit-in in Lahore on Friday. Last year he conveniently forgot the date and came to Pakistan on June 29. Instead of organising a rally or calling for a sit-in he only appealed to the army to provide justice to those killed. He waited for a month and then proceeded to Islamabad where he said he had come to spread the message of peace and harmony. He announced that as a contribution to NAP he had written eleven books promoting moderation which the ministry for education should include in the curriculum. He again returned to Pakistan in December only to commend the Rangers over the good work they had done in Sindh and called upon them to replicate the operation in Punjab.
Qadri has not so far revealed his future plan. He says he will announce it at the rally on Friday. Besides seeking justice for those killed in police firing, Qadri strongly criticises the government for corruption, apathy to people’s suffering, bad governance and high-handedness. In August 2014 he took the agitation against the government to a feverish pitch, but finding the parliament arrayed against the agitation called it off and left for abroad. He didn’t return for nine months. It is yet not known if he would stay longer this time. His opponents in the PML-N maintain there is secret collusion between Qadri and Imran Khan to derail the system.
During the various interviews he has given Qadri sounds bitter. It adds to his unhappiness to confess that the people have not arisen en mass to his call. They have been depoliticised by the ruling mafia, he believes. He has again reminded the COAS that he had promised that justice would be done to the PAT workers. Is Qadri hoping that the referee would finally raise his finger this time? Will the referee again let him down?
