ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday directed the Islamabad advocate general to assist the court in a matter related to the registration of a criminal case against Lal Masjid cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz.

When the hearing of the case was resumed, the interior ministry informed the bench that it had sought the law ministry’s opinion on the matter.

Adjourning the matter until July 12, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani directed the Islamabad advocate general to appear before the court at the next hearing to assist the court.

During the last hearing, the interior ministry secretary Mohammad Suleman told the IHC bench that neither Mr Aziz nor the students of Jamia Hafsa were running any sort of institution that posed a danger to the state’s safety and security.

The bench was hearing the case of a petitioner seeking the registration of an FIR against Mr Aziz, his wife Umme Hassan and the students of Jamia Hafsa for inviting Daesh – also known as the Islamic State – to avenge the killing of Osama bin Laden and the 2007 Lal Masjid operation.

The petitioner, activist Mohammad Jibran Nasir, has contended that students of Jamia Hafsa invited IS to Pakistan in a video. He said that in a separate video, Mr Aziz endorsed his students’ actions, and poses grave danger to the safety and security of Pakistan.

Mr Nasir initially reached out to the Aabpara police in this regard, who refused to lodge an FIR. He then filed an application before a civil court that dismissed the application on March 9. The petitioner has asked the court to annul the civil court’s decision and direct the police to register an FIR in this matter.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2016