ISLAMABAD: Rejecting government’s plans to take over mosques and seminaries, religious scholars have announced that they will hold countrywide protests against the move.

Speaking at a convention, they raised their voices against the Waqf Amlak Act 2020 and vowed to resist it. The ulema have formed the ‘Movement to Safeguard Mosques and Seminaries’ which will organise demonstrations, protest rallies and gatherings.

They said representatives from all five schools of thought, leaders of religious parties and representatives of five boards of education of seminaries had devised a joint strategy to protest against the act and new educational boards for seminaries.

Programmes and gatherings will be organised in mosques and seminaries and people will be informed about the government’s plans.

“Mosques and seminaries had been free, are free and will remain free. None will be allowed to put restrictions on their freedom. We have resisted all such conspiracies in the past and would face them in times to come. The movement to protect mosques and seminaries will continue,” they added.

Those who spoke on the occasion were head of the movement Maulana Zahoor Ahmad Alvi, chief of Punjab chapter of Wafaqul Madaris Arabia Pakistan Maulana Qazi Abdur Rashid, Maulana Nazir Ahmad Farooqi, Maulana Pir Iqbal Naeemi, Dr Attiqur Rehman, Qari Abdul Karim, Mufti Abdul Salam and others.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2021