ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court on Wednesday directed the federal and provincial governments to initiate criminal proceedings against those issuing harmful fatwas or rulings and, in turn, advocating extremism and terrorism through public rallies.
“We direct the federal and provincial governments to monitor those advocating hate, extremism and terrorism and prosecute the perpetrators in accordance with the law,” a two-member bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Mushir Alam wrote in a 43-page verdict.
The court issued a detailed verdict in a case which was filed to highlight how public life was disrupted across the country during a 20-day sit-in by far-right party Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) in November 2017.
During the sit-in, the party had occupied the Faizabad interchange which connects Rawalpindi and Islamabad, virtually paralyzing public life in both the cities.
The TLP leadership took to the streets following an amendment in the Elections Act 2017, deeming that the Khatam-e-Nabuwat oath was modified deliberately as part of a larger conspiracy. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, which was the ruling party at the time, termed the amendment as a “clerical error” and rectified it through an Act of Parliament.
“Protestors who obstruct people’s right to use roads and damage or destroy property must be proceeded against in accordance with the law and held accountable,” the court said in its verdict.
In a reference to the edicts issued by the TLP leaders during their sit-in, the court has also directed the government to prosecute “a person issuing an edict or fatwa, which harms another or puts another in harm’s way.”
“TLP sowed discord and dissension, it resorted to mob-rule, rioting and the destruction of property,” the court ruled.
The apex court has also directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to proceed against the TLP for not accounting “for its funds and election expenses …. as the constitution empowers the election commission to get requisite information from any executive authority.”
“The responsibilities placed on the election commission by the constitution and the law must be fulfilled, they are not optional,” the court said.
Muhammad Nadeem Qasim, additional director-general ECP, said that the ECP had fully cooperated with the Supreme Court during the case and furnished all required documents as well.
“Our law department is examining the verdict and we will do whatever is needed under the law,” he told Arab News while giving no specific details about the action which will be taken against the TLP’s registration as a political party.
The court also noted that the “ambitious leadership” of the TLP provoked “religious sentiments, stoked the flames of hatred, abused, resorted to violence and destroyed property worth 163,952,000 rupees (Rs163 million).”
About the media coverage extended to the TLP, the court said it “received prime-time free media coverage and publicity, transforming it overnight into a household name.”
Analysts and legal experts said that the apex court’s verdict has charted out a framework for the government and other state institutions to handle the elements which resort to public rallies and violence in the name of religion.
“The apex court verdict will now act as a precedent to move against hardliners and fundamentalists who threaten the state organs with fatwas and demand submission before their demands,” Sharafat Ali, a senior advocate in the high court, told Arab News.
Faizabad sit-in: SC orders state to prosecute those advocating hate, terrorism
Faizabad sit-in: SC orders state to prosecute those advocating hate, terrorism
- Election Commission says it will do everything in its capacity under law
- Protestors destroy property worth Rs163mn during 20-day demonstrations
Pakistan says it seized 32 square kilometers inside Afghanistan as border clashes escalate
- Security official describes ‘limited tactical action’ in Gudwana after Afghan assaults
- Islamabad accuses Kabul of sheltering militants as UN, China and Russia urge restraint
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has seized a 32-square-kilometer area inside Afghanistan following overnight fighting, a security official said on Saturday, as cross-border clashes between the two countries escalated sharply.
A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said troops carried out a “limited tactical action” in the Gudwana area opposite the Zhob sector along the frontier, capturing Afghan territory after responding to attacks on Pakistani positions.
“On the night of Feb. 26/27, posts opposite the Zhob sector launched anticipated physical attacks on multiple Pakistani positions,” the official said, referring to fighters linked to Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities, whom Islamabad identifies as Tehreek-e-Taliban Afghanistan (TTA).
“In response to aggressive unprovoked fire and physical attacks, Pakistan security forces launched a limited tactical action on the night of Feb. 27/28 in the general area of Gudwana with a view to capture TTA Tahir Post,” he continued, adding that 32 square kilometers of Afghan territory were seized.
The official said special combat teams crossed the border after preparatory bombardment, supported by intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets providing “real-time battlefield awareness.”
He said 24 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed and 37 wounded, with no Pakistani casualties reported.
The claims could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate confirmation from Taliban authorities in Kabul of any territorial loss in the Gudwana area.
The latest clashes erupted after Pakistani airstrikes targeted what Islamabad described as militant hideouts inside Afghanistan over the weekend, triggering retaliatory fire along the frontier and sharply escalating long-running tensions. Islamabad accuses Kabul of sheltering Pakistani Taliban militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan, an allegation that Afghanistan denies.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Saturday evening that 352 Afghan Taliban fighters had been killed and more than 535 wounded since the latest phase of hostilities began.
Tarar said Pakistani strikes had destroyed 130 check posts, 171 tanks and armored vehicles and targeted 41 locations across Afghanistan by air. Those figures could not be independently verified.
The United Nations, as well as China and Russia, have called for restraint.
The United States said Pakistan has the right to defend itself against cross-border militancy.
