HYDERABAD, Dec 26: A large number of office-bearers, activists and supporters of the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) held protests here, in Mirpurkhas and Jacobabad against an attack on the life of central leader Maulana Aurangzeb Farooqui in Karachi.

The protesters gathered outside the local press club here on Wednesday

led by Hyderabad ASWJ leaders Maulana Abdul Samad Haidri, Syed Asim Ali Shah, Mufti Abdul Qayoom, Mohammad Farooque Azad and Qari Abdul Ghaffar and shouted slogans against the government.

Carrying banners and party flags, they condemned the attack in which four policemen, two private gunmen and a driver were killed on Tuesday while Maulana Farooqui was wounded.

Two more ASWJ activists were shot dead in other incidents in Karachi the same day.

They alleged that the government was usurping rights of the ASWJ and failed to provide proper protection to its leaders and activists.

Demanding proper security for Maulana Farooqui and arrest of the attackers immediately, they said that it was a coterie which perpetrated heinous crimes in the country to defame Islam and its teachings.

They appealed to the Chief Justice of Pakistan to take suo motu action against the excesses and injustices being faced by ASWJ supporters and activists in the country.

They threatened to continue protests if the killers were not arrested.

Maulana Farooqui was wounded in the attack on his motorcade in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Karachi, while his guards and driver were killed.

MIRPURKHAS: Scores of workers and office-bearers of the Mirpurkhas chapter of ASWJ held a demonstration outside Madina Masjid here on Wednesday in protest against the attack on Maulana Farooqui.

Led by ASWJ district president Hafiz Attaullah Haidery and Hafiz Ehtishamul Haq, they demanded arrest of the people involved in the attack. Carrying banners, flags of the party and placards, they shouted slogans against the incident.

Addressing the protesters, Hafiz Attaullah Haidery strongly condemned the administration of Karachi for its failure to provide safety to citizens and their property.

He demanded that the government pay Rs1 million compensation each to the heirs of victims, ensure arrest of the terrorists involved in the attack and expose them before the nation.

He said that a long march of Tahaffuz Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat would be held from Karachi to Islamabad from Jan 11 to 18 in protest against targeted killings, particularly in Karachi, of the people associated with ASWJ.

He appealed to people for participation in the march to press the government to stop such incidents.

SUKKUR: ASWJ activists held a rally in Jacobabad in protest against the attack and killing of ASWJ activists in Karachi.

According to sources, the rally was taken out from the roundabout of the DC road to the local press club where a sit-in was staged, suspending vehicular traffic on the DC office road for half an hour.

Addressing the rally, Hafiz Muhammad Yousuf Farooqui, Moulvi Barkatullah, Moulvi Faheem Banglani, Muhammad Saleem Sunni, Zamir Ahmed Banglani and Qari Ghulam Rasool Nomani said Sunni leaders and workers were being killed in Karachi through a conspiracy.They said terrorists were busy in their activities in the city, but the administration took no action against them, adding that the PPP government had failed to restore peace to Karachi.

They demanded immediate arrest of the culprits involved in the attack on Maulana Farooqui and killing of seven ASWJ workers and a punitive action against them.