An unsavoury resolution

Former Lal Masjid imam Maulana Abdul Aziz is in the news yet again for the wrong reason. He first rose to prominence when he started challenging the writ of the state as pupils of the seminary attached to the mosque acted as the vice prevention brigade in Islamabad. That led to a bloody confrontation in 2007 between the state and the armed militants ensconced inside the mosque, ending in a huge loss of life. The maulana was apprehended while escaping from the scene incognito. Unfortunately, however, neither the previous governments nor the present one seem to have learnt any lesson from that horrible experience. He and his wife, who presided over Jamia Hafsa madressah for girl students, were allowed to function from alternative facilities. This is apparently why he has felt emboldened to keep demanding his old post even though the mosque is owned by the government, which has the prerogative to appoint a prayer leader of its choice.

Matters came to a head last week when Maulana Aziz and girl students occupied the mosque and the adjoining madressah. According to reports, with a view to creating greater nuisance he also sought the help of three main seminaries of the Deobandi school of thought, asking them to send their students for staging protest demonstrations as a show of unity for the "sake of Sharia implementation." But they declined to join hands with him. In fact, as it turns out, the Wafaqul Madaris Al Arabia had already delisted Jamia Hafsa following its bloody standoff with the government. The situation provided the authorities concerned with a good opportunity to evict the occupiers and hold them to account for defiance. Instead, they have ended up negotiating a deal, agreeing to allot 20 kanal land for Jamia Hafsa in return for ending the mosque occupation. It is hard to comprehend why it has been decided to reward him. All the more so considering that the maulana never repented endorsing the horrific terrorist attack on the Peshawar Army Public School that left 149 people dead, 132 of them children; nor does he accept the Constitution. He remains the same person who turned the mosque into an extremist stronghold. What is the guarantee he would not resort to the same methods he employed to have his way when he was in charge of the Lal Masjid and madressah?

This government seems to have no qualms about putting restrictions on the freedom of expression but tends to get cold feet when it comes to dealing with extremist elements of different hues. Prime Minister Imran Khan has repeatedly been saying he wants to see renewal of Pakistan as envisioned by the Father of the Nation Quaid-i-Azam. He needs to translate his words into action.