Religious bigotry

Published December 1, 2015

ZAHID Hussain in his column ‘Reclaiming the original ideology’ (Nov 25) writes: “Islamic parties, gathered under the umbrella of the Milli Yakjehti Council (MYC), have threatened to launch nationwide protests against what they describe as a ‘conspiracy’ to turn Pakistan into a secular state. ‘We cannot compromise on the basic ideology of Pakistan,’ they have vowed.

This squabbling lot that never agrees on any religious issue now appears united in defending the country’s ‘Islamic identity.’ What mockery! Quaid-i-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah in his struggle for the creation of Pakistan said in an interview to Reuters in 1946: “The new state would be a modern democratic state with sovereignty resting in the people and the members of the new nation having equal rights of citizenship regardless of their religion, caste or creed.”

Pakistan was never supposed to be, in the words of Mr Jinnah, a “theocratic state,’ that these religious groups strive for.” He says this country has deviated from its core principle. Theocracy is anathema to modern democracy that the Quaid had envisaged.

Mr Hussain says: “The country drifted from its ideals when the state got involved in religious matters…” In fact, it is an attempt to redefine Pakistan’s ideology that has harmed the country the most by widening the religious divide. Rising religious extremism and intolerance have led to escalation in violence against religious minorities and their systematic persecution.

What happened in Shantinagar, Gojra, Joseph Colony, etc, and more recently in Jhelum is testimony to that. Many of the religious groups that form MYC are directly or indirectly patronising militant organisations like the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan.

Pakistan was created to be a modern democratic state with freedoms of beliefs, and religion. He says, ‘We must reclaim the original ideology of Pakistan if we really want to move forward and establish a tolerant society.’

Wg Cdr (r) Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan
Peshawar

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2015

Opinion

Editorial

Energy inflation
Updated 23 May, 2024

Energy inflation

The widening gap between the haves and have-nots is already tearing apart Pakistan’s social fabric.
Culture of violence
23 May, 2024

Culture of violence

WHILE political differences are part of the democratic process, there can be no justification for such disagreements...
Flooding threats
23 May, 2024

Flooding threats

WITH temperatures in GB and KP forecasted to be four to six degrees higher than normal this week, the threat of...
Bulldozed bill
Updated 22 May, 2024

Bulldozed bill

Where once the party was championing the people and their voices, it is now devising new means to silence them.
Out of the abyss
22 May, 2024

Out of the abyss

ENFORCED disappearances remain a persistent blight on fundamental human rights in the country. Recent exchanges...
Holding Israel accountable
22 May, 2024

Holding Israel accountable

ALTHOUGH the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor wants arrest warrants to be issued for Israel’s prime...