Founder of hardline Pakistani Islamist party dies after leading sit-in

ISLAMABAD: Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan's founding leader, Khadim Hussain Rizvi, died in Lahore at the age of 54, confirmed one of his party spokespersons, Muhammad Ali, while talking to Arab News in Karachi.
The cause of death was not known immediately, though local media claimed he was unwell and suffering from fever for the last few days.
Rizvi's last political activity was to lead an anti-France demonstration outside Islamabad to protest the publication of caricatures disparaging Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in that country.
According to media reports, he complained of fever while he was still leading the campaign and was taken to Shaikh Zayed Hospital in Lahore on Thursday where he was pronounced dead.
His party emerged after Mumtaz Qadri, a police commando, assassinated Punjab governor, Salman Taseer, in January 2011 for defending a Pakistani Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, who was charged with blasphemy and sentenced to death.
Rizvi and his associates launched a campaign for Qadri's release since they thought he had acted to protect the honor of the prophet (pbuh).
The TLP leader and his party also held nationwide protests against Bibi's acquittal in October 2018.
Other than that, Rizvi led protests against a Dutch politician, Geert Wilders, who announced an anti-Islam cartoon competition.
A controversial preacher who used strong language to revile his critics, Rizvi was accused of weaponizing the issue of blasphemy in a country where religious sensitivities usually run high.
His recent demonstration forced the government to consider the possibility of expelling the French ambassador after taking up the issue in parliament.