PESHAWAR: Attack on church a conspiracy, says governor
Bureau Report
PESHAWAR, Oct 29: The NWFP Governor, Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah, has said that terrorism should be condemned irrespective of the fact that whosoever is spreading it.
Speaking at a gathering of Ulema at the Cabinet Room of Civil Secretariat here on Monday, the governor said that not even in the non-Muslim countries, the Muslims pray in security but in our country Muslims are compelled to offer prayers under strict security.
He said the incident in Bahawalpur was a brutal act of terrorism. He said the enemies of Pakistan would be behind this heinous act who wanted to hatch a conspiracy to bring harm to the Islamic identity of Pakistan.
The governor said that terrorism in all its shapes and manifests was condemnable. Neither Islam allows such heinous acts nor anybody involved in such acts could be termed a Muslim because such elements were tarnishing the image of Islam. A terrorist had no religion, he remarked.
The governor said that Pakistan had been the victim of terrorism. In NWFP bomb explosion took place in streets, bazaars, shops, cinema houses and big buildings. No nation was more exposed to terrorism than us and no nation was more vociferous in condemning terrorism, he added.
Despite Pakistan being the victim of terrorism and raising voice at various forum against terrorism all its pleas fell on the deaf ear. Now, the international community after Sept 11 realized the gravity of the situation and decided to root out terrorism in all its dimensions, he said.
Referring to the carnage in Bahawalpur, the governor said that the enemies of the country particularly ‘RAW’ might be behind this condemnable act. The governor said that members of the Christian community were patriotic citizens, who, at all critical junctures safeguarded and protected Pakistan.
The governor said that the Bahawalpur incident was a part of conspiracy to pitch the Christians against the Muslims, adding that the people of Pakistan should realize the motive behind this conspiracy.
The governor said that India was out to harm Pakistan as it never accepted the creation of Pakistan and always ready to harm Pakistan’s interest.
He said the shrewd and prudent decision of the Pakistani leadership kept India and Israel out of the international coalition.
The governor said that Pakistan was not against the people of Afghanistan. We supported them in the past, we are supporting them today and we would support them tomorrow, he said.
About the prevailing geopolitical situation in the region, the governor said that the government had showed magnanimity towards public gatherings. “We understand that in a democratic society everybody has a right to criticize and oppose the government’s decision,” he said.
However, he said the opposition could conduct public gatherings but not take out processions and rallies because this would create a law and order situation and the anti-state elements and saboteurs might penetrate such rallies to cause harm and damage to the public property and peoples’ lives.
