Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Wednesday strongly condemned the statement of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, in which he claimed that “we are not capable of fighting for 24 hours”.
It was tantamount to insulting the martyrs, who had sacrificed their lives in the war against terrorism and for the security of the motherland, the minister said in a statement.
He said the aging leader of Jamiat Ulema-e- Islam-Fazl (JUI–F) could not probably bear his ‘disrespect’ at the hands of young Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and started talking on the issues about which he knew nothing.
Advising Fazlur Rehman to avoid giving such irresponsible statements, Fawad recalled that it was the Maulana who had expressed skepticism about Pakistan’s defence capabilities by stating that the Taliban had reached the hills (near the Federal Capital).
His misplaced suspicions were dispelled by Pakistan’s valiant armed forces and law enforcement agencies by breaking the back of terrorists, he added.
The minister said it was better for the Maulana not to cast such unfounded doubts on the matters of national interest only to satisfy his political ego.
Where was the Maulana when Pakistan had responded to the Indian aggression on February 27, 2019, he added.
He wished that Maulana Fazl should have shown concern about innocent Kashmiris facing Indian brutalities when his “friend” Nawaz Sharif was embracing his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in Raiwind.
Attacking the national institutions for political reasons was highly reprehensible, Fawad added.
Taking a jibe on the Pakistan Democratic Movement, the minister said any alliance, which was ever led by Maulana Fazl till today, could not “fight” for even 12 hours.