Nuggets
‘PM Gilani most corrupt’
Quoted in Jang, ex-minister of JUIF Azam Swati stated that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani was the most corrupt PM in the history of Pakistan. He said a committee, if formed under him, would uncover all the corruption of the government. PPP’s Sharmila Farooqi countered that Azam Swati was three years as minister in the government but thought fit to think of corruption after he was fired.
Tahir Ashrafi supports Governor Taseer
Ex-adviser on religion to Punjab and Islamic scholar Tahir Ashrafi was quoted by Express as saying that Governor Taseer was a brave man who stood by his beliefs but did not commit blasphemy. The Governor he said was killed by make-believe clerics and politicians. He said Blasphemy Law had been handed over to illiterate people to enforce.
No verification in Blasphemy Law
Writing in Express Abbas Athar stated that the basic fault in Blasphemy Law was that under it there was no independent verification of allegation of insult made against an accused. He added that it needed only someone to come up and accuse someone and the said person is thereafter sentenced.
Muwahid Shah’s wisdom
Speaking at Punjab University and reported by Jang famous US-based intellectual Muwahid Shah stated that Muslims should be given a special seat at the UN Security Council. He said Pakistan’s foreign policy was being shaped and run by bureaucrats who valued their jobs above country. He said India and Israel were committing state terrorism.
Columnist gets divine sanction
Writing in Express famous columnist Abdul Qadir Hasan also called Bhola by friends confessed that a saint named Syed Sarfraz Hussain Shah after his umra sent for him through socialist progressive journalist Ahmad Bashir. After the saint gave him the good tidings Bhola was so overcome by the effect that he had to be supported by Ahmad Bashir after which Bhola felt faint for many days.
Jinnah backed two nation doctrine
Quoted in Express scholar Shariful Mujahid stated that Jinnah believed in the two-nation doctrine and his 11 August speech was not in favour of secularism but in support of Misaq-e-Madina of the Prophet PBUH. He said it was misleading to debate the secularism of Jinnah today.
Jinnah was for secular Pakistan
Quoted in Express Haider Farooq Maududi, son of Maulana Maududi, stated that Jinnah created a secular state but Liaquat Ali Khan used Maulana Shabbir Usmani and other clerics to impose The Objectives Resolution on Pakistan. He said Muslim League and Congress were both created by British Raj. He said all problems of Pakistan were due to the clergy.
Dhoni embraces Islam? {AoA}
Daily Jinnah reported that Indian cricket captain Mahinder Singh Dhoni who was leading his team in South Africa was rumoured to have embraced Islam. The news was circulating on the Internet but was not confirmed by anyone. Dhoni could have been visited by an angel during sleep in which case cricket will be further strengthened by the spirit of Islam the same way as after Pakistan’s honest cricketers decided to defeat the Western civilisation through the clever device of spot-fixing.
Tahir Ashrafi and Maulana Sherani
Writing in Jinnah Khushnood Ali Khan wrote that Maulana Muhammad Khan Sherani appointed as chairman of Council for Islamic Ideology was not a great scholar and was therefore not suited as chairman. On the other hand, Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi was more suited as member of the Council but Sherani did not want to see him in the Council. JUIF was openly opposing the government but the government was still begging the JUIF (hath jor rahi hai).
‘Sahib’ still not abandoned
Daily Pakistan noted that Punjab bureaucracy was using the word of address ‘sahib’ in its communications and verbal usage. The word had been banned by a Punjab Assembly resolution in 1996 and disallowed its appendage to the names of civil servants. Legal experts held that use of sahib was an indicator of the habit of slavery in Pakistan.
Zardari is clever and good-tempered
Quoted in Jinnah ex-speaker, ex-foreign minister of Pakistan and son of General Ayub, Gauhar Ayub stated that Asif Ali Zardari was a good-tempered and intelligent politician. He said as speaker he kept trying to make things easy for Zardari when the latter was in prison. He said his grandmother believed in saints but his father did not think much of mysticism.
Wukla persons go berserk in Sheikhupura
Reported in Jinnah wukla lawyers of Sheikhupura went berserk and destroyed the office of DCO and thrashed whoever came in front of them because the DCO had ordered the pulling down of their illegal offices in the precincts of the courts. In reaction, the civil servants thus threatened by the wukla assault struck work and locked up their offices.
Terrorist Saifullah Akhtar let off
Reported in Jinnah America had protested to the ISI for having released a known terrorist named Saifullah Akhtar saying that such known terrorists wanted in various parts of the world should not be allowed to go free. Akhtar is wanted for doing terrorism in Afghanistan. Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said that Akhtar was let off in December 2010 because no case could be proved against him in the court. Akhtar was named by Benazir as her possible assassin.
Dancers Nargis and Honey go ‘gutham-gutha’
Reported by Jang famous dancers of Lahore and loved by the people Ms Nargis and Ms Honey Shahzadi were at a furniture shop when they came face to face. Honey claimed to the police that she was buying furniture for her beauty parlour when Nargis attacked her along with her goondas. Later the fight was resolved amicably.
Fazl swears at Prophet’s Mausoleum
Quoted in Express JUIF chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman claimed that he had gone to Madina to swear at the tomb of Prophet PBUH that he would avenge blasphemy in Pakistan by opposing any changes in Blasphemy Law.
Chief Reporter and Blasphemy Law
Chief Reporter Ansar Abbasi wrote in Jang that he and a number of conservative lawyers in Lahore got together to file a petition in 1984 at the Federal Shariat Court asking for a law against insult to the Prophet PBUH. In July 1984, a lady lawyer (Asma Jahangir?) whose husband was an industrialist insulted the Prophet PBUH in Islamabad during a speech. This was followed by unrest in the meeting. On this Appa Nisar Fatima raised the issue in the parliament and presented the bill about 295-C of the Penal Code. It was accepted by MNAs but Law Minister Iqbal Ahmad Khan changed the text at the last minute to assign ‘death or life’ as punishment for blasphemy. On this, Nisar Fatima took the matter back to Federal Shariat Court saying the punishment for blasphemy was ‘hadd’ (mentioned in the Quran) and could not be less than death. Hearing started on first April 1987. Advocate generals from the provinces agreed with petition and the judges agreed to having death as the only punishment. Dr Tahirul Qadri held that even evidence of intention was not required before quickly killing the blasphemer. The Court gave the government till 1991 to amend the Penal Code Section 295-C. PM Nawaz Sharif wanted to challenge the verdict but desisted after a message was sent to him about how the people would react.