(LETTER) Sir, Mir Barkat Ali, the North-West Frontier Province delegate to the All Parties Shia Conference Lucknow, is reported to have quoted facts and figures to prove that the interests of the Shia community were being completely ignored in services and Legislatures.

The Shias of the N.W.F. Province have no such grievances. The Sunnis in our Province have not only been just and fair to the Shias but liberal and generous. The latter in the Frontier Province have much more than their share in the Local bodies, Legislature and services. The Shias in the Province have always been freely performing their religious rites and duties with their Sunni brethren also joining them in large numbers.

I wonder what facts and figures Mir Barkat Ali could quote to substantiate his baseless allegations. We, the people of the N.W.F. Province are proud of being able to set an example of cordiality of relations between the Sunnis and Shias and the young Shias to whom Islam is dearer and greater than sectarianism.... Yours etc.

Mir Ghulam Rasul
Secretary
Shia Youngmen Federation
Peshawar City

Published in Dawn, October 26th, 2020