Lahore court issues notice to NCCIA on plea of FIR against Fazl over remarks
JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman. Photo: JUI/ Facebook
Petitions seeking legal action against Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman over his recent remarks about Pakistan’s armed forces and martyrs have started reaching district courts across Punjab, with courts seeking responses from the relevant authorities.
Additional District and Sessions Judges in Lahore, Gujranwala and other districts are hearing petitions seeking criminal proceedings against the JUI-F chief. The petitioners claim that his remarks were offensive to the victims of the armed forces and had hurt public sentiments.
In one such case, a court in Lahore on Wednesday sought the response of the director of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) on a petition seeking registration of a criminal case against Fazl over his alleged remarks about the country’s martyrs.
Read: PA speaker demands apology from JUI-F chief over remarks on martyrs
Additional Sessions Judge Malik Latif issued a notice to the NCCIA director and adjourned further proceedings till August 17.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel, Advocate Mudassar Chaudhry, claimed that Fazl had given a controversial speech about the country’s martyrs, a video of which had subsequently been circulated on social media.
The petitioner claimed that the speech had deeply hurt his sentiments as well as the general public. It was further argued that the remarks had caused anxiety to the families of the martyrs and therefore warranted criminal action.
The petition asked the court to direct the relevant authorities to register an FIR against the JUI-F chief and proceed against him in accordance with law.
According to the petition, despite the matter being brought before the relevant authorities, no action was taken, forcing the petitioner to seek the intervention of the court to register a criminal case.
Background
The petitions stemmed from statements made by the JUI-F chief recently during a public gathering where his comments about the armed forces and the country’s martyrs drew strong criticism from political opponents and various quarters.
Punjab Chairman Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan publicly condemned the remarks, demanded that the JUI-F chief apologize to the nation and maintained that no one should be allowed to undermine the sacrifices of Pakistan’s martyrs.
Also read: Fazl’s remark angers the ministers
Defense Minister Khawaja Asif also slammed Fazl over his remarks about military personnel, describing them as “morally insensitive”.
Reacting to the JUI-F chief’s statement, Asif said the maulana, being an experienced politician and a prominent religious leader, was expected to exercise greater responsibility in his choice of words.
He emphasized that no one puts his life on the line just for a salary, especially at a time when Pakistan continues to wage war on terrorism.
