Pakistan Millat-e-Jafaria has demanded of the government to allot Haj quota to the Shia community as per its population ratio. At a press conference here on Sunday, Senator Abbas Kumali, President, Millat-e-Jafaria Pakistan also accused the NWFP government of failing to protect Shia population in the province, particularly in Dera Ismail Khan.
He was of the view that only 2,200 seats for Haj were given to Shia population out of total 75,000 seats during 2006 and 21 private tour companies of Shia were registered out of total 550. And these companies were also allotted few seats.
In 2005, he said, 1200 seats were given Shia population against the total allocated seats of 60,000.
According to him, Shia community is being given hardly three percent Haj quota against its population ratio of around 30 percent of the total population of the country.
Senator Kumali welcomed formation of committee for the distribution of Haj quota under four senators on the directives of Supreme Court and sought substantial increase in the quota.
Besides, he said, the government badly has failed to provide protection to the Shia in the country particularly in NWFP.
He mentioned that total 82 people were killed in Dera Ismail Khan during last one year and 58 of them were belonging to Shia. Despite this, he said, the irony is that the law enforcement agencies picked only the relatives of these victims by implicating in false cases.
He claimed that majority of youth from Dera Ismail Khan have left the city fearing either of killing or arresting by the law enforcement agencies. He held the provincial government and the administration equally responsible for these crimes and biased treatment meted out to Shia in the province.
According to him, since 2006, at least 34 major terrorist activities were carried out in the province and the responsible elements could not be apprehended yet.
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