Shahid Iqbal from Upper Dir said he was at the Azadi March with his cousins out of solidarity with the JUI-F. He said that they used to follow the Jamaat-i-Islami, but “we have now shifted to JUI because of the upright policies of Maulana Fazlur Rehman”. He said the policies of Jamaat-i-Islami strayed away, saying their religious and political agenda was not fair.

Rafiullah, a seminary student in Islamabad, is running a small stall to charge mobile phones around the clock with the help of some fellow students. He said the venture was a volunteer effort and not for profit, charging Rs40 for a two-hour charge. Rafiullah did not explain where he obtained the generator used to power the stall, but said they were taking turns to operate it because they support the maulana’s cause to implement Islamic rule in the country.

Abdul Nasir Raisani, a truck driver from Khuzdar who supplies marble from mines to factors in Karachi, said he was excited to be a part of the Azadi March because he got to visit Islamabad for the first time. He said he liked the maulana because the march gave him a chance to visit and learn about Islam, but regretted that he and another driver from his area were not allowed to move around the city. He said he felt Islamabad was a nice city, but very expensive, but added that he wanted the march to continue for a few more days.

Fazalur Rehman from the Kashmore district in Sindh is one of the very few Sindhis who have been with the JUI for three generations. His grandfather is a landowning farmer who joined the party after meeting Mufti Mehmood, he said, adding that his father became a cleric and he wants to pursue an MPhil in Islamic studies.

He said the JUI-F was growing in Sindh because of the PPP’s mismanaged and oppressive rule.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2019