The News has said that previous media reports of arrests of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) vice emir Pir Zaheerul Hassan Shah turned out to be not true as the police are struggling to arrest him.
Reportedly, Shah has fled to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since late Monday when the government tightened the noose around TLP leaders for targeting the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa.
“We have zeroed in on the cleric. We are not far from getting a hand on him,” said an official to The News.
Previously, the culprit had announced a head-money of Rs10 million on Qazi Faez Isa in reaction to a decision of a three-member bench in the Mubarak Sani case.
Meanwhile, FIRs have been filed against more than 1500 TLP members across the Punjab province after the government took a firm stance against the right wing religious party.
Sargodha police has arrested 26 people for mob violence and attempting to lynch a Christian man on Saturday while registering a case against 44 nominated and 300/400 unidentified suspects.
The case was registered on behalf of the State of Pakistan with clauses included in the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) 1997.
However, the police also registered a blasphemy case against the Christian man who was seriously injured in the mob attack.
A worker of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) filed the blasphemy case.
On May 25, a violent mob tried to lynch the Christian man. Multiple viral videos on social media show horrific scenes of violent mobs damaging, setting fire and looting the property.
Station House Officer (SHO) Shahid Iqbal and other police personnel at the scene rescued the man from the burning house but when he was brought out, the mob swarmed in and attacked him.
The FIR also alleges that women were also a part of the crowd, inciting violence.
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) granted pre-arrest bail to Maulana Aleemuddin Shakir on Tuesday — a cleric involved in the Icchra Bazar incident when a woman was harassed for wearing a shirt with Arabic alphabets printed on it.
Accompanied by his lawyer, the cleric appeared before the court, promising to cooperate with the police investigation to demonstrate his innocence. However, he raised concerns about the possibility of his arrest by the police.
The lawyer highlighted that the petitioner was among those who shielded the woman from the hostile crowd and noted the police’s acknowledgment of his role in the incident.
Requesting pre-arrest bail, the lawyer stated that the petitioner was prepared to provide surety bonds.
Judge Arshad Javed granted bail to the petitioner, holding back the police from arresting him until March 25.
Background:
A woman wearing a dress with Arabic writing printed on it was attacked by a violent mob in February, last month. Videos of the incident quickly spread online, showing the mob surrounding her while she was at a restaurant in Lahore’s Ichhra Market.
Some people there accused her of having Quranic verses printed on her dress, which they found offensive. They were angry because of the Arabic writing on her dress, not knowing what it really meant. The dress actually has the word ‘sweet’ written on it.
In a viral video that emerged on social media, a frenzied mob can be seen exhuming an Ahmadi from his grave, boasting to have done a sacred act while Ahmadis were seen helplessly sitting across the graveyard covering their faces.
The video has been widely shared and garnered reactions from people all across social media.
Filmmaker and activist Ali Raza shared the video and said, “Reports coming in that Maulvis in Sheikhupura dug out an Ahmadi grave and destroyed the tombstone. These are same poor people who we help through charity, who comes to the world that Allah is putting them through a test and we feel for them and now we know why!”
Reports coming in that Maulvis in Sheikhupura dug out an Ahmadi grave and destroyed the tombstone.
These are same poor people who we help through charity, who comes to the world that Allah is putting them through a test and we feel for them and now we know why! pic.twitter.com/cktseGYj0w
Journalist Kalbe Ali questioned: “Whats the difference btween extremist Right wing RSS type hindus , Zionist /settler Israelis and these Muslims in Pakistan who are vandalising grave of someone Ahmadi of faith.
Whats the difference btween extremist Right wing RSS type hindus , Zionist /settler Israelis and these Muslims in Pakistan who are vandalising grave of someone Ahmadi of faith. such acts were never preached by Sri Ram Chandar, Prophets and elders of the Jews and Islam too pic.twitter.com/nVYg0DyVyh
TV anchor Rabia Anum shared her thoughts on X, “We can never claim to be better than israelis, some of us are worse than them infact whenever and wherever we get a chance. Whether it’s desecrating graves, mistreating our servants, beating up our spouses OR putting people behind bars because they have different political views. We are not better.”
We can never claim to be better than israelis, some of us are worse than them infact whenever and wherever we get a chance. Whether it’s desecrating graves, mistreating our servants, beating up our spouses OR putting people behind bars because they have different political views.… https://t.co/HA8GQWYF85
Author and Lawyer Yasser Latif Hamdani posted, “While everyone plays election election this is what you are doing to Ahmadis in Pakistan. “Ghairatmand Muslims” attacking dead bodies now. The 2nd Amendment to the Constitution is a crime against humanity. This is what it has led to.”
While everyone plays election election this is what you are doing to Ahmadis in Pakistan. “Ghairatmand Muslims” attacking dead bodies now. The 2nd Amendment to the constitution is a crime against humanity. This is what it has led to. https://t.co/XFi9EMl3pH
Ram Mandir in India is being inaugurated today (Monday) by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with state-sponsored fanfare.
“This will be our Vatican City, the holiest site for Hindus across the world,” said Sharad Sharma, spokesperson for Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), a rightwing Hindu group, and member of the Hindu trust building the temple. “After 500 years of Hindu oppression, Lord Ram will finally be returned to Ayodhya,” The Guardian cites him as saying.
Considering the importance the event holds, the ceremony is going to be attended by a huge number of Bollywood celebrities, cricketers, politicians and leading businessmen of the country. A newly commissioned airport in Ayodhya is also in the works. Security has been tightened, while the fear of violence has prompted Muslim residents of Ayodhya to send their children and women to relatives in neighbouring towns.
Bollywood celebrities at the inauguration of Ram Mandir
The temple is a reminder of the very inception of this controversy built on the ruins of 16th-century Babri Masjid. It was demolished by a Hindutva-infused right-wing mob in 1992 after decades of disputes. The riots that happened following the demolition killed more than three thousand Muslims.
The mosque was built in 1527 by Mughal Emperor Babur and was a rare surviving example of the architecture of the early Mughal Empire, which ruled India from 16th to 19th centuries. Muslims worshipped in the mosque for more than 300 years.
Summarising the history of the site, Dr. Audrey Truschke wrote in Time: “In the 1850s, when India was largely under British colonial rule, the first signs of trouble arose as the Babri Masjid emerged as a key site of Hindu nationalist attempts to rectify perceived historical wrongs by Muslims, an idea inherited from British colonialists. Hindus claimed that Lord Ram, a major god and mythological hero, had been born at the very spot on which the mosque stood. Competing claims of Ram’s birthplace were once attached to many sites in Ayodhya, but the Babri Masjid drew particular fervor because it was a mosque. Some imagined further historical wrongs associated with the Babri Masjid, including claiming that the mosque was built after Babur’s general destroyed a Hindu temple at that location. None of these claims stand up to historical scrutiny. But in the 1980s, Hindu nationalist groups began tapping into these claims to argue that the mosque needed to be destroyed to clear the way for a new Hindu temple, declaring Mandir wahi banayenge (‘The temple will be built right there!’). After years of agitation, their efforts resulted in an explosion of Islamophobic violence on December 6, 1992, when a Hindu mob numbering at least 75,000 descended on Ayodhya and dismantled the Babri Masjid, brick-by-brick.
Modi’s BJP benefitted from the situation and came to power in 2014. After the second victory in BJP in 2019, India’s Supreme Court—laden with judges affiliated with BJP- the court called the mosque’s destruction ‘an egregious violation of the rule of law,’ but nonetheless ruled that a Hindu temple could be built on the mosque’s ruins.”
Modi laid the foundation stone at a groundbreaking ceremony in August 2020.
Posed as a divine moment this is interpreted as a political gimmick by The Guardian because general elections are going to be held in April in India and by invoking the religious sentiments of the 80 per cent majority of the country, Modi is seeking a third term in power. Prime Minister Modi has also declared that God had chosen him as an instrument to be “representative of all Indians” and he had begun 11 days of “strict vows and sacrifice” to prepare for the event.
Even though many Indians have given in to the political gimmickry, most are reminded that this Vatican City is nothing but a monument built after demolishing Babri Masjid by force with the help of brute majority.
Celebrate #RamMandir how much you want but no one can change the fact that it has been built after demolishing Babri Masjid by force with the help of brute majority.
A Twitter user commented that this is the win of Jinnah’s two-nation theory.
The happiest man right now would be Mohammad Ali Jinnah, his two nation theory has finally been proven right without doubt by the current torchbearer of that ideology in India.
Pratesh from India shared a clip from ANI where a teacher was teaching dance steps on bhajans in schools to celebrate the inauguration. He commented, “Now what happened to no religion in school? Was it only applicable for hijab?”
Now what happened to no religion in school? Was it only applicable for Hijab? https://t.co/OcVP6vYzbE
Writer and Educationist Raju Parulekar lamented the state of India has lost its secular spirit in a tweet.
To whomsoever it may concern:
As a citizen of this country, I was under the false impression that we live in a democracy with tolerant people who lead lives with respect, humility and compassion. Sadly it appears that I was mistaken as we as a people have set out to celebrate… pic.twitter.com/ZVozQozIRE
Authorities in India’s most populous Indian state Uttar Pradesh have banned the distribution and sale of Halal-certified products. These include dairy products, garments and medicines. A notificaton from the state government proclaims that the halal certification of the products is illegal.
Uttar Pradesh, or UP as it is commonly called, is ruled by firebrand right-wing Hindu monk Yogi Adityanath, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.
UP Govt. banned sale of Halal Certified products in the state.Several organisations issuing #HalalCertification for financial gains & exploiting religious sentiments of a particular community in country. We request Central Govt. to ban Halal in whole country.#Yogi_Against_Halalpic.twitter.com/iAwUxUFrBn
“Halal certification of food products is a parallel system which creates confusion regarding the quality of food items,” the notification said.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is the country’s apex body in charge of determining standards for most food products sold in the country and determines the standards food products should meet, the notification said.
Officials have conducted inspections all around the state.
After the ban on Halal products by BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh Government,a team of Food Safety and Drug Administration officials conducted an inspection of food items at Sahara Mall. Lucknow,Uttar Pradesh #HalalBanInUP | #HalalCertification | #Indiapic.twitter.com/gpGgRt1TW0
Extremists from the right wing are appreciating the step as a way to curb “jihad”, alleging that it is funded by the sale of halal products.
Halal Money funds Jihad..period!! On the #HalalCertification ban in UP, I applaud the decision by Yogiji and ask – What do the Muslims actually want? They want personal laws, Halal food, madarssas and then they complain about not being mainstream ♂️
“Religion should not be brought into food. There were many items such as garments, sugar, etc which were being branded as Halal, which is against the law,” state BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said on Monday.
Professor Sher Ali from Bannu was forced to apologize publicly by signing an affidavit for teaching Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and organizing a seminar on women’s rights in Islam.
A tweet from X user Khurram Zakir has brought the tragic state of intolerance to the spotlight.
The apology letter of Professor Sher Ali, who is associate professor of biology at district Bannu, is both a code of conduct and a lesson for all progressives individuals and educators. Whether you are a scientist or a Ph.D. professor, this affidavit tells, you have to teach n… pic.twitter.com/oU66UIpkcG
The dispute started with Professor Sher Ali organizing a seminar on the topic of Women’s Rights in Islam and the Constitution. It was arranged in response to the growing public displeasure against women leaving their homes without adhering to the Islamic dress code. The professor triggered religious circles who accused him of deviating from the teachings of Islam.
Although Darwin’s Evolution theory is part of the curriculum set by the board of education, the professor had to bear the brunt of fulfilling his duty and teaching about it. The incident has raised concerns about the inconducive space for rational discourse even in an academic setting.
Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani has dropped the controversial Prohibition of Extremism bill that could potentially ban “any extremist or violent” organisation in the political sphere.
The bill, presented by State Minister Shahadat Awan, was dropped when members expressed anger over the legalisation.
The Senate Chairman said, “The government can decide whether it wants to pursue this bill or not […] but for now, I am dropping it”.
A majority of Senators, including the Balochistan National Party’s (BNP) Tahir Bizenjo, opposed the bill, expressing their displeasure that such choices are taken only at the wish of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) without any consultations.
A sizable chunk of senators have said that the bill is “dangerous for democracy”.
Jamaat-e-Islami’s Senator Mushtaq Ahmed said that “This bill will be the last nail in democracy’s coffin.”
More than 4 years after his last release Zero (2018), Shah Rukh Khan is making a comeback to the big screen with Pathaan and the hype around the spy thriller is at an all-time high.
Recently, it was announced that the advance booking of the film will open in India on January 20 but a couple of days before that, a few cinema chains including IMAX shows opened ticket bookings for the audience. And the response was unprecedented.
A lot of people on social media are sharing screenshots & clips of ticket booking site Book My Show where most of the shows of Pathaan are either on a filling fast mode, about to get sold out or simply sold out.
A report on Box Office India revealed that one of the best & the biggest multiplexes of Hyderabad, Prasads Multiplex saw a whopping 1800 tickets being sold in just 2 hours of bookings going live.
Several reports further state that the Siddharth Anand directorial has already collected over Rs 2 crore in advances for day one.
The film is now easily on course to be the biggest post-pandemic when it comes to advance booking beating last year’s Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva.
That’s not all, going by the massive response to the advance booking, a report in Bollywood Hungama predicts an opening day in the range of Rs 40 crore plus in India.
The film is releasing on Wednesday, which is a normal working day and to collect in the range of Rs 40 crore on a non-holiday is pretty huge.
Earlier, the advance booking in several international territories opened to massive response and the film is set to create new records in several countries.
Predicting the biz on the extended opening weekend, trade analyst Girish Johar told ETimes that Pathaan is expected to earn Rs 300 crore global gross in the first 5 days of its release.
Also starring Deepika Padukone & John Abraham, Pathaan is slated for January 25, 2023, release.
Earlier this month, Hindu seer Mahant Paramhans Acharya threatened to burn Khan alive for supposedly ‘insulting’ saffron colour in his upcoming film Pathaan.
The threat has come about after extremists raged against a song in the film in which the female lead, Deepika Padukone, can be seen wearing a saffron bikini. The title of the song, Besharam Rang roughly translates to ‘Shameless Color’. Hindus revere the colour, with many priests choosing to wear saffron robes.
Acharya said that the song insulted the saffron color. “People of our Sanatan Dharma are protesting continuously regarding this matter. Today we have burnt the poster of Shah Rukh Khan. If I get to meet the film Jihadi Shah Rukh Khan, I will burn him alive,” he said.
Mumbai Police reported receiving a complaint to fill an FIR against the movie’s director, producer, and actors for the song Besharam Rang. The complaint was regarding the saffron bikini Deepika had worn, saying that the color had been used to hurt the religious sentiments of Hindu people.
People in India are boycotting Cadbury chocolate over the allegations that the gelatine used in Cadbury’s goods is “derived from beef”. #BoycottCadbury has been trending on Twitter since Sunday.
On social media, a screenshot of what appears to be a Cadbury website was extensively shared and claims that the gelatine used in their goods is “halal approved and sourced from cattle.”
— Sadhvi Prachi (मोदी का परिवार) (@Sadhvi_prachi) October 30, 2022
As per NDTV- an Indian media news outlet, the screenshot is from an older version of the brand’s Australian website.
Another reason Cadbury products are being boycotted is because a recent advertisement by the company uses “Damodar” as the name of a poor lamp seller. Customers are claiming that this has been done to show “someone with PM Narendra Modi’s father’s name in poor light”.
Have you carefully observed Cadbury chocolate’s advertisement on TV channels? The shopless poor lamp seller is Damodar.
This is done to show someone with PM Narendra Modi’s father’s name in poor light. Chaiwale ka baap diyewala.
