Daily Times

Details of Maulana Sami-ul-Haq’s assassination are still sketchy. His son has confirmed that he was stabbed while alone at home. At the time of writing, no group or private individual has claimed responsibility for the killing. It is expected that a more concrete picture of what transpired will emerge in the coming days.

But what is known is that this development comes at a time when the country is already passing through turbulence. Thus the immediate risk is that the likes of Khadim Rizvi and his cohorts will exploit the murder on the grounds that the so-called Father of the (Afghan) Taliban had called on the Supreme Court (SC) to reverse its verdict in the Asia Bibi case. Haq’s supporters have been cautioned against taking to the streets.

The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S) chief was, to outside observers, something of an enigma; a contradiction of sorts. It was his role in running the controversial Darul Uloom Haqqania madrassa that earned him the ‘Father of the Taliban’ moniker. Mullah Omar passed through its doors as did prominent members of the Haqqani Network. Indeed, during its previous tenure in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the PTI came under heavy criticism for lavishing millions of rupees on reforming the seminary. We at Daily Times were among those voices; believing that funds would be better spent in overhauling the mainstream education sector in terms of accessibility, affordability and curriculum reform to bring all madrassa students firmly into the provincial fold. And while we stand by our position we, nevertheless, recognise that Maulana Haq supported bringing his seminary under the regulation of the KP government. Back in 2013, he positioned himself at loggerheads with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) when he issued a counter-fatwa to the latter’s denunciation of the anti-polio programme.

The repercussions of his death will also be felt across the Durand Line. After all, at the beginning of last month a delegation from Afghanistan, including representatives of the Kabul government, had approached the JUI-F supremo to request him to act as a mediator between various Taliban groups. Maulana Haq had reciprocated by agreeing to meet those who were serious about resolving the Afghan question. That he demanded that this be done without interference from either Islamabad or Washington underscored, for many, his sincerity on this front.

With Maulana Haq now gone from the picture, it is hard to see how Pakistan will move forward in fulfilling US appeals: namely, bringing the Taliban to the multilateral negotiating table. For to be sure, the former Senator represented perhaps the most trustworthy figure for reconciliation on this side of the border; as seen through Afghan eyes. Yet the true extent of what his loss will mean for the peace process will depend largely on the identity of those who assassinated him. Thus Prime Minister Imran Khan’s immediate orders for an inquiry into his former electoral ally’s murder is to be welcomed. For the country needs to know if this was a politically motivated killing or not. *

Published in Daily Times, November  3^rd 2018.