Daily Times

Now that the government has finally decided to treat, and sort out, TLP (Tehreek e Labbaik Pakistan) as a militant outfit as opposed to a political party, hopefully, this will be the last U-turn on the matter and the ruling party will cause no more embarrassment to itself, the state and its people. The dignity of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) holds immense importance for all Muslims and this matter is not even up for debate at all. Therefore, it is not up to a bunch of people or any political or even religious party to question the degree of anybody else’s faith. And it is definitely not anybody’s right to hold the entire country hostage over such matters.

Why, then, was the interior minister bending over backwards to accept all sorts of TLP’s demands, short of expelling the French ambassador of course, when they were blocking roads, destroying public and private property, and even injuring and killing policemen? And why did the minister say, just a couple of days ago, that TLP was a legitimate political party and would thus have to be accommodated? And for what reason did he authorize the release of more than 300 of TLP’s arrested workers who had caused the damage, injured the people, and taken the lives of police officers.

Did he mean to say that Pakistan is a country where one can do as one pleases, even wage war on the state, and get away with it so long as one is registered as a legitimate political party? And why on earth did he go so far as to say that the government “would look into the fourth schedule” also? Surely he knows that the fourth schedule lists names of terrorists and terror suspects, including sectarian violence, under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997. What made him make such illogical statements, that too as the sitting interior minister? Full marks to Information Minister Fawad Chaudhary, though, for not mincing words and exposing the protestors’ real intent.

TLP’s habit of invoking sensitive religious beliefs to get people to carry out blatant anti-state activity merits a stiff response, yet the state always chooses to cave in. How can they, or anybody, justify opening fire on the police force; and that too in the name of religion? Who will answer to the families of those killed in the firing? Islam is a religion of peace and nobody should be allowed to exploit it to create differences among people, to the point that it leads to cold-blooded murder. And it must again be stressed very strongly that respect for the Holy Prophet (PBUH) is paramount for all of us. Therefore, it is up to the state to sort such matters out and restore sanity and dignity to the national discourse. *