PESHAWAR: Thousands of Pakistanis protested against the Supreme Court’s top judge on Friday, after he issued a ruling related to blasphemy that sparked online backlash and thinly veiled death threats.
A campaign targeting Supreme Court Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa began after he ordered the release of a man from the Ahmadi community, considered heretical by hard-line Muslim scholars.
The man had been accused of disseminating a forbidden Ahmadi text, which firebrand clerics consider tantamount to blasphemy — an incendiary issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, where even unproven allegations of offending Islam have sparked violence.
Around 3,000 people gathered at rallies across the northwestern city of Peshawar after Friday prayers.
Crowds blocked roads and chanted “Death to Qadianis” — a slur referring to Ahmadis — as well as “Long live Islam.”
The Supreme Court issued a statement on Thursday evening defending his ruling, denying that it went against the Islamic constitution of Pakistan.
“This impression is absolutely wrong,” it said. “The organized campaign against judiciary and judges is unfortunate.”
A spokesman for Pakistan’s Ahmadi community, Amir Mahmood, told AFP that “one-sided negative propaganda is being spread against this judgment” which protected a man from “being persecuted for his religious belief.”
Isa’s ruling first went unnoticed two weeks ago, before it was highlighted by social media accounts linked to the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan party behind violent anti-blasphemy protests.
Posts calling for him to resign have been shared thousands of times on social media.
The Pakistani chapter of the Taliban militant group — known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — called Isa “an enemy of Islam” and “a damned man.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said Isa’s ruling “protects the constitutional right of all religious minorities to freedom of religion or belief.”
“Those political leaders and sections of the media that are responsible for this campaign must be restrained,” the organization said on social media platform X.
Ahmadis have been discriminated against and persecuted for decades in Pakistan.
The second amendment of Pakistan’s constitution, made in 1974, declares Ahmadis non-Muslims.
The law also prohibits them from professing to be Muslims or spreading their faith, and allows the death penalty for those found guilty of insulting Islam.
In his judgment, Isa ruled that according to the constitution, “every citizen shall have the right to profess, practice and propagate his religion.”
“Freedom of faith is one of the fundamental tenets of Islam. But sadly, in matters of religion, tempers flare up and the Qur’anic mandate is forsaken,” he added.
He also said the book allegedly disseminated by the accused had not been outlawed at the time of the alleged crime in 2019.
Cleric Fazlur Rehman, the influential leader of the conservative religious party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, said Isa’s reasoning was “false and based on bad intentions.”
In 2011, the governor of eastern Punjab province was killed by his bodyguard after calling for reforms to the stringent blasphemy laws that Ahmadis frequently fall foul of.
Thousands protest Pakistan Supreme Court minorities ruling
https://arab.news/9krtf
Thousands protest Pakistan Supreme Court minorities ruling
- CJP Faez Isa ordered the release of a man from Ahmadi community, considered heretical by Muslim scholars
- Around 3,000 people gathered at protest rallies across the northwestern city of Peshawar after Friday prayers
Nine killed, one child injured as avalanche hits house in northwest Pakistan
- Avalanche strikes family home in Arandu area of Lower Chitral district
- Heavy snowfall cuts off towns and villages across northern Pakistan
PESHAWAR/QUETTA: At least nine people were killed while an injured child was rescued alive when an avalanche struck a house in a mountainous district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, officials said on Friday, as the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) warned of more rain and snowfall in the area along with southwestern Pakistan.
The incident occurred in the Arandu region of Lower Chitral district, affecting members of the same family, as the PMD urged tourists to avoid unnecessary travel while authorities worked to prevent weather-related emergencies.
Rescuers evacuated dozens of residents and tourists as heavy snow blocked roads in Khyber, South Waziristan and Swat districts, where authorities cleared routes and provided food, clothing and bedding, the Rescue 1122 service said.
“An avalanche fell in Sarigal village of Arandu, a far-flung area in subdivision Drosh,” Deputy Commissioner of Lower Chitral Rao Hashim Azeem told Arab News over the phone.
“Ten people from the same family came under the avalanche in which nine were found dead and one child was rescued alive,” he added. “Police, Chitral scouts, rescue and local administration took part in the operation.”
Azeem said the rescue efforts were hampered by heavy snowfall and the area’s remote location, adding that the bodies were taken to Drosh for burial.
Heavy snow hit Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Murree, and Galiyat, stranding vehicles and causing power outages, local media reported.
“The system causing rain/snowfall is active over northern parts of the country,” the PMD said in its advisory on Friday at noon, predicting more showers and snow in the next few hours.
“Tourists [are] advised to stay vigilant and avoid unnecessary travel during rain and snowfall,” it added.
TEMPERATURE DROP IN BALOCHISTAN
The PMD said temperatures in several in districts southwestern Balochistan province dropped to –9°C as a snowstorm with strong winds hit Quetta, Kalat, Chaman, Killa Saifullah, Nushki and Loralai, disrupting daily life.
“Dozens of vehicles including passenger buses have been stranded at N-50 highway near Muslim Bagh due to heavy snowfall since Thursday night,” Assistant Commissioner Muslim Bagh Dheeraj Kalra told Arab News.
“District administration accompanied by PDMA [Provincial Disaster Management Authority] Balochistan removed the snow from the N-50 highway and opened the roads for traffic on Friday morning.”
Meanwhile, PMD Balochistan Deputy Director Muhammad Afzal said the next spell of snowfall and rain would hit the southwestern parts of the country from Jan. 25 to 27 but will not be as harsh as the first one.
“The recent system of snowstorm entered Balochistan through the Iran-Afghan border which dropped the mercury to –9°C and this freezing temperature will continue till tomorrow evening,” he said.
Weather authorities this week forecast intermittent rains and snowfall in northern regions of the country between Jan. 21 and Jan. 24, with heavy snowfall likely in upper and hilly areas of the province.
Tens of thousands of tourists flock to Pakistan’s scenic north every winter to witness snowfall, often neglecting warnings from disaster management authorities.
In Jan. 2022, at least 21 people, including children, died after they were stuck in freezing temperatures during a snowstorm in the Pakistani hill station of Murree.
In view of the situation, Federal Minister Abdul Aleem Khan on Friday directed the National Highway Authority (NHA) to ensure that all highways remain open and fully operational under all circumstances.
“The minister has instructed NHA field staff to remain on high alert and to maintain 24/7 monitoring of weather conditions on highways in snowfall-affected areas,” the Pakistani information ministry said.
“He emphasized that ensuring uninterrupted traffic flow on national highways, particularly in upper regions, is a top priority.”
