LAHORE: The Jamaat-i-Islami has announced a war against “political and economic terrorists” and has sought support of the masses for the cause.

“I’ve decided to wage a war against the ruling feudal lords and capitalists doing political and economic terrorism and to bring them to task. The nation should support me in this struggle,” party emir Sirajul Haq told a reception hosted in his honour here on Sunday afternoon.

“The time is approaching for a Day of Judgment, either to be set in Islamabad or on the lawns of Minar-i-Pakistan in Lahore, for holding accountable the ruling elite for its corruption and plunder of the public wealth.”

Secretary-general Liaquat Baloch and Punjab chief Dr Syed Waseem Akhtar also spoke.

The JI chief said that agents of the British had been ruling the country that had been achieved through the sacrifices of the masses. He said since he had personally experienced poverty he was struggling for the restoration of the rights of the poor.

He said the PPP and the PML-N had been ruling the country turn by turn and their leaders had plundered billions of rupees, and they never thought of bringing each other to book on account of corruption.

Mr Haq said many people sitting in the assemblies actually deserved to be in Adyala jail or in some stable.

He held weakness of the Election Commission and the electoral system responsible for it as a few families were holding hostage politics and democracy because no poor could think of becoming a member of parliament.

Referring to Nawaz Sharif’s statement that some elements wanted to sabotage talks with the Taliban, Mr Haq urged the prime minister to expose the elements who wanted to pitch armed forces against the masses and thus plunge the country into turmoil.

He called upon leaderships of other political parties to rise above political interests and compete with each other in the service of the masses.

He also urged the minorities to calls themselves as Pakistanis instead of minorities.