ISLAMABAD: After concluding five rounds of discussions with Lal Masjid cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz on Friday, Islamabad’s administration barred him from leading the Friday prayers and delivering the weekly sermon, reported a local media outlet.
The last round of talks concluded just before Friday prayers started.
Earlier, Lal Masjid’s Shuhada Foundation had announced that Aziz would lead the Friday prayers and deliver the sermon on May 11.
An official from the capital’s administration said, ““His plan was that he would go to the mosque in the form of a procession along with a few vehicles loaded with female students but we did not yield to any pressure and we told him that even the new Jamia Hafsa has been built illegally over a natural stream so why not clear it first as a dutiful citizen.”
The prayers were led by deputy cleric Amir Siddique.
Earlier, the local administration had placed a ban on all religious and political activities by Lal Masjid’s Shuhada Foundation and declared it as an “unregistered entity”.
