Verses about 'jihad' not being deleted from syllabus: minister

13 Apr, 2004

Killers of General Zia-ul-Haq would soon be taken to the task and they would not go unpunished, said Ijaz-ul-Haq Federal Minister for Religious Affairs while talking to newsmen at Multan airport on Monday.
He said that Quranic verses about 'jihad' (crusade) were not being deleted from the syllabus nor government had any intention to bring change in the existing syllabus rather all errors were being removed from the schoolbooks.
He said that government had constituted a committee for open discussion on the issue of syllabus.
He said that they wanted to produce engineers, scholars, planners, bankers from the religious institution by providing the training/education of Information Technology (IT) and equipping all the religious seminaries with computers."
He said that government had no intention to occupy religious institutions or keeping them under its control.
He said that they would continue to contact all the five 'wifaq-ul-Madaris' to modernise their educational institutions and providing them financial assistance, books, computers, instruments and laboratories.
Defending the National Security Council, Ijaz-ul-Haq said that its status would be as advisory council and any elected government could dismiss it anytime.
He said that there would have been no dissolution of Assemblies again and again had the security formed in 1985.
The minister said that some 'ulema' were opposing the United States and leading anti-US demos but they were begging votes for George Bush in United States then.
US government had invited 16 'ulemas' of different schools of thought as state guests to convince the Muslim voters in favour of Bush.
He said that there was vast difference between their acts and utterances. He said that government was seriously considering a proposal to introduce 'Haj' flights from Multan, Faisalabad and Rahimyarkhan and construction of a Modern 'Haj' complex in Lahore.
Replying to a Question about the uniform, Ijaz-ul-Haq said that it was matter of General Pervez Musharraf. He would shed his uniform when he desired. It was not a national issue.
Ijaz said that our religious seminaries were not involved in terrorist activities neither producing terrorist nor any al Qaeda man nor Taleban took refuge in Pakistan.

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