LAHORE, March 9: The attack on residences of the Christian community in Lahore drew condemnation from all political parties, calling it downright illegality, they called for appropriate action.

Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Raja Riaz of the PPP, said it was the “incompetence of the provincial government.” After all, the FIR for blasphemy was lodged on Friday, he said.

“Knowing the sensitivity of the matter, the police station concerned and the special branch should have taken pre-emptive action and secured the locality,” he said while talking to Dawn. But, they did not.

Over 4,000 people were allowed to gather at the place, but no-one tried to stop them. The police sprung into action when things had already spun out of their hands and the mob mentality had taken over the situation, he said.

“Such events cannot take place even in remote areas if police gets alerted and alive to its duty. Happening right under the nose of Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, it only bespeaks of his incompetence or inability to control such violence,” he asserted.

Shafqat Mahmood, a spokesman for the PTI, called it “criminal offence, and says that perpetrators should be punished in accordance with the law.”

“If someone has committed blasphemy, the law is there to take its course. There is no room for private justice in the civilized society,” he said and added: “Whosoever has committed crime should be punished by the state and it holds true for both sides -- arsonists and blasphemers. The local police should have moved much faster to pre-empt the violence.”

Maulana Tahir Ashrafi of Muttahida Ulema Council was of the view that “it has nothing to do with Islamic, rather it is totally un-Islamic. The Holy Prophet (Pbuh) and Islam have charged the Muslims with the security of all non-Muslims. Thus, there is no religious justification for such events. They are simple crimes and must be dealt with as such.”

He denied that ulema can play a role in stopping such violence. “Since it has nothing to do with religion, the ulema have no role to play. It is a law and order problem and law should take its course and all criminals be punished under relevant laws. Even if one has man committed a crime, how can one punish the whole community or locality?”

Parvaiz Rasheed of the PML-N and a spokesman for the Punjab government claimed that it was crime and would be punished. “All those found guilty, even from police, would be taken to task. The Punjab government is committed to providing security to all residents of the province regardless of their religion.

All those who have suffered any loss of property will be duly compensated. The government will also ensure that the community stays in the same premises and feel secure and we will take every possible step to make it certain,” he said.

Meanwhile, various religious parties have also condemned the Badami Bagh tragic incident, demanding of the Punjab government to take stern action against those who have caused massive loss to properties of the Joseph Colony residents.

JAMAAT-I-ISLAMI: In a press statement, Jamaat-I-Islami Chief Syed Munawar demanded immediate action against those who damaged the houses and shops of the Christian community.

He said when relevant laws existed to punish blasphemers, there was no need for the people to take law into their hand and damage the properties of minorities on the pretext of blasphemy laws.

“It is a criminal act that is prohibited under the Constitution of Pakistan,” he said, adding that the incident should be probed in depth through judicial commission.

JAMATUD DAAWA: The Jamatud Dawa leadership has also criticized the act of setting ablaze properties of the Christian community by unknown assailants.

In a statement, JuD Chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed and convener Ameer Hamza said that setting over 100 houses and shops on fire in reaction to the crime of one person was absolutely wrong and unjustified.

They demanded of the Punjab government to hold an independent inquiry into the matter.

MWM: The Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) leadership has also condemned the arson attack on the Christian community.

In a statement, MWM Punjab chapter’s secretary-general Allama Asadi termed the act against the teaching of Islam and demanded of the Punjab chief minister to take action against those responsible for the incident.

AWP: The Awami Workers Party (AWP) has condemned the burning of Christian homes and asked the chief minister to take immediate action against the perpetrators.

AWP’s Punjab secretary-general Aasim Sajjad claimed that local gangsters mobilized the mob to burn down homes of Christians.