BADIN: The decades-old dispute between two rival groups of devotees over the custodianship of the Luari Sharif shrine has again caused tension in the town named after it with demonstrations being held by one side protesting against a government official for what they believe unfairly supporting the other side.

More than a dozen devotees, belonging to one group, have lost their lives in armed attacks since the issue of custodianship first surfaced about three decades back. Many more were wounded in the attacks. The shrine was sealed off after the last such attack some time ago.

On Aug 21, Abdul Qayyum Soomro, the CM’s adviser on Auqaf, along with some prominent devotees belonging to one group, unsealed the shrine for a brief period of time and stayed inside.

This infuriated the other group whose leaders Mir Tariq Talpur, Aslam Talpur, Noor Ahmed Talpur and Mohammed Nawaz urged their supporters across Sindh to protest against the official’s “unauthorised” unsealing of the shrine and “siding with the rival group”. Responding to the call, their supporters held a series of demonstrations in Badin, Mirpurkhas, Dadu, Tando Mohammed Khan and several other towns over the past two weeks.

Luari Sharif town remained tense since the official’s visit to the shrine with people fearing a clash between the two groups.

Mir Tariq Talpur, along with his associates, held a press conference in Badin to condemn Mr Soomro’s alleged support for their rivals.

He told journalists that Mr Soomro was supposed to take both groups in confidence before unsealing or visiting the shrine although he was quoted as saying that he intended to mediate between the rival sides.

He said Mr Soomro’s act of leading the rival group’s leaders into the shrine only provoked the other side’s feelings and this might spoil the peaceful atmosphere of Luari Sharif town.

He said that the protest against his partiality would continue until Mr Soomro officially take along both sides if he intended to mediate in the dispute.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2015

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