ISLAMABAD, Feb 19: Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Maulana Fazlur Rahman said on Sunday that the demonstration in Islamabad against blasphemous cartoons published in European newspapers was a success and a victory of the organisers for ensuring that no damage was caused to a single shop, vehicle or public property.
Speaking at a news conference following day-long skirmishes between demonstrators and security personnel, Maulana Fazl announced that the MMA and the combined opposition would hold meetings in Islamabad on Monday in continuation of the ‘national consultative conference’ that had announced the Tahaffuz Namoos-i-Risalat rally of Sunday.
He declared that the country-wide peaceful demonstrations would continue till Denmark offered unqualified apology and took action against the newspaper guilty of printing the cartoons.
Maulana Fazl rejected Interior Secretary Syed Kamal Shah’s claim that he had been allowed to take part in the demonstration by Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao and demanded his sacking for misusing state machinery for suppressing a demonstration staged for a noble cause.
He said the opposition would take up the issue of the misuse of the government machinery against peaceful demonstrations in parliament through privilege and adjournment motions.
Maulana Fazl said the government instead of giving a message of national unity on the issue had given a negative signal to the world that the entire opposition was against its policies.
He condemned the government action of putting under house arrest MMA president Qazi Hussain Ahmed, MNAs Hanif Abbasi and Mian Aslam, Allama Jalil Naqvi, Syed Munawar Hasan and hundreds of other leaders and workers of opposition parties.
He said despite the fact that the security forces had stopped people at Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Hasanabdal and other places, a large number of faithful made their way to the site of the rally.
He said: “We wanted to stage a sit-in after reaching Aabpara to wait for workers to reach but we were attacked by teargas shells and had to leave.”
The Maulana, after an official announcement was made that he had been put under house arrest, came out of the parliament lodge to lead the demonstrators and marched along with Liaquat Baloch, Qari Gul Rahman, Sahibzada Abul Khair Mohammad Zuberi and others.
He said that ARD leaders and workers led by Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Raja Zafarul Haq and Zafar Iqbal Jhagra had also reached Zero Point to join demonstrators. Similarly, hundreds of demonstrators, who were trying to reach Aabpara, had been stopped at Faizabad, he added.
He alleged that violent incidents in Lahore and Peshawar rallies had been orchestrated by government agencies to make it a basis for the action they had unleashed in the federal capital.
Mr Baloch paid tributes to the electronic and print media for enduring hardships during the coverage of the day-long demonstration.
He announced that an FIR would be lodged against Mr Sherpao for attacking peaceful demonstrators with teargas shells and rubber bullets.
