KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi on Friday asked the government to step up its probe into Jaranwala tragedy to punish the masterminds and perpetrators, showing unity with the Christian community of the country.

A delegation, which JI Karachi Chief, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman led to the Saint Patrick's Church in Saddar locality, expressed sympathy to Bishop Benny Mario Travas over communal riots targeting Christians in Jaranwala Punjab province, lately.

The entire nation feels the pain that the anti-social elements have inflicted on the minorities, leaving them exposed to displacement and life threats, Hafiz Naeem shared his views during the solidarity visit.

He demanded of the government to carry out an inquiry into the incident in a bid to bring the culprits to justice, besides ensuring an exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. Showing sorry about the targeted community, he censured the government and authorities because their failure to prevent the attacks.

Later, he told reporters that the country is responsible for the safety of its citizens including those with different religious backgrounds. "If there are some troublemakers behind the incident then it is the government and state responsibility to bring the troublemakers to justice," he said.

He said that Islam, as a religion, ensures equal rights to the minorities in a Muslim dominating society. "No religion permits killing or torturing minorities or burning their sacred worship places, books or symbols," he said. He said that the government failed to ensure its writ to stem such repeating incidents, asking it to step up promptly like it did after May 9 to bring the perpetrators of Jaranwala chaos.

"The JI will cooperate with the affected families to all possible extents in order to bring the culprits to full justice," Hafiz Naeem pledged, saying that these incidents are engineered to depict Pakistan as an unsafe country for minorities.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023