LAHORE: There was a visible sense of grief and mourning in Lahore, just as elsewhere, after a Peshawar school attack that led to the death of students on Tuesday.

Many people this reporter talked to expressed their sorrow and condemned the dastardly act. Others took exception to the ‘indifference’ of some politico-religious parties.

“I am surprised to see that none of the major religious parties has condemned this act. Is this their love for the country and its people especially children,” said Aijaz Anwar, a known civil society activist.

“Children are the future of a nation and have to look after their parents once they get old. It’s high time the so-called religious and political parties opened their eyes and supported the state’s actions against terrorists,” he said.

The Peshawar massacre, he said, had proved that the terrorists wanted to deprive Pakistan of its most precious asset.

Government officials, teachers, students and businessmen also expressed their shock.

“I don’t have words to explain my feelings. It is a cowardly act and I request the political, religious and military leadership to unite to save the country especially its asset -- the children,” said a lecturer at a government college.

A shopkeeper in G-1 Market (Johar Town) said a majority of the customers he dealt with on Tuesday was found to be talking on mobile phones about the Peshawar tragedy. “Some of them were concerned about their relatives in Peshawar.”

“It seems time has come to leave this country for good,” the shopkeeper quoted a customer as having expressed his feelings.

Another shopkeeper in Gulberg said he was shocked to see the footage and gory details of the incident. Everyone prayed for the safety of the country and their dear ones, he said while blasting that terrorists had no religion.

Published in Dawn, December 17th, 2014