MULTAN, Aug 4: Christian community living in the vicinity of Pak-Arab Fertilizers factory on Multan-Lahore road took out a procession against `demolition’ of a church.

The church was the part of a kutchi abadi, inhabited by the Christian workers, built on the premises of the factory which has recently been privatised.

The new management started a process of negotiations with the Christian community from February this year for the vacation of the abadi and church land. Both the parties reached an agreement in April that the factory management would give Rs 1m for the relocation of the people and Rs 0.1m for reconstruction of the church.

The church’s guardian, Father Yaqoob Farooq, told Dawn that the people had vacated the land in April while June 1 was decided as the deadline to shift the church belongings. He said the factory management paid them the agreed money.

Father Farooq said that he returned Multan after a trip on Friday and learnt that people of his community were protesting on the road against what they alleged desecration of holy books as the factory management had demolished the church on Thursday (Aug 3).

The protesters blocked the Multan-Lahore road for a couple of hours after burning used tyres. They were demanding registration of a case against the ‘culprits’. A police contingent led by DSP Sharif Zafar reached the troubled spot and defused the tension. Later, negotiations were held between Christian community and the factory management and the matter was resolved reportedly when the latter gave another sum of Rs 0.2m for the church.

Belonging to the Catholic belief, Father Farooq said that he had removed all the church belongings several months ago and to his knowledge there had left nothing that could become the subject of desecration. He said however the Christians of protestant belief were also used to visit the church and he did not know it they had something holy left at the church.

He said but the factory management should have called someone responsible from among the local Christian community before demolishing the church building. “This act of veneration might have won them respect instead of protest,” he added.