RAWALPINDI: The newly-built Taleemul Quran seminary and its attached mosque, which burned down during riots in the garrison city three years ago, is set to be inaugurated – with the permission of the district administration – on Sept 29, just a couple of days before the start of Muharram.

The seminary and mosque were torched along with a nearby cloth market during violence that led to the clamping of curfew in Rawalpindi on Nov 15, 2013.

The provincial government then allocated Rs240 million for their reconstruction.

The seminary’s administration has invited several key figures, including Maulana Fazalur Rehman, Jamaat-i-Islami Emir Sirajul Haq, Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat leader Ahmed Ludhanvi, Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and several other religious scholars from across the country.

District admin green-lights Taleemul Quran inauguration to ‘defuse tensions’

The timing of the inauguration ceremony, however, has raised eyebrows among locals, with many fearing that such an event – held in such close proximity to the beginning of Muharram – may heighten tensions in the area.

Head of the Taleemul Quran Seminary Maulana Ashraf Ali told Dawn that both buildings had been re-constructed some time ago, but the inauguration would be held on Sept 29.

He admitted that students had shifted to the new building around four months back.

“Construction on some washrooms is not yet complete and may take about a month, so we were waiting for the right time to schedule the inauguration,” he said.

Before green-lighting the inauguration, the City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) called a meeting of law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

A senior CDGR official told Dawn the local administration and police had been directed to ensure that speakers at the event do not indulge in hate speech.

“The local administration was worried, but the District Intelligence Committee reviewed the case and decided to let the seminary go ahead with their event, because if they denied permission, it would also create tensions in the area,” he said.

He said that the law enforcement and intelligence agencies recommended surveillance of foreign elements so that they do not participate in the inauguration function since in 2013, such elements played a role in inciting sectarian violence.

He said that the administration had also ensured that inauguration did not fall on a Friday, as there would be an even bigger crowd on that day on account of Friday prayers.

“The district administration and police will ensure that no banned religious leaders participate in the event, and that loud speakers are not used,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2016