Fazl vows to expedite efforts to overthrow govt

PESHAWAR: Central chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Maulana Fazlur Rehman has vowed to expedite efforts to overthrow the "illegitimate and incompetent government".

Addressing a mammoth show of power of his party in the name of the Mufti Mahmud Conference, he said the government has proved a total failure on all fronts.

"The economy of the country has collapsed due to the flawed policies of the rulers. Price-hike has made life miserable for the people. Joblessness is the worst in the history of the country. Foreign policy has badly failed", the Maulana said in his late-night speech to the big gathering.

He paid glowing tributes to Mufti Mahmud, who was his father. He said that the sacrifices of Mufti Mahmud would always be remembered in history.

"Mufti Sahib was the Mufti Azam of the country till death. He issued 25000 decrees during his stay as Mufti Azam and none of his decrees was taken back", he said.

The JUI-F head believed that efforts were underway to remove the Islamic sections from the Constitution and make the country a secular one.

"But I warn all such elements that their dream would never come true and the Islamic identity of the country would be protected," he said.

"It is very clear in the Constitution that no law would be made against the teachings of Islam. The Constitution protects the sanctity of the Holy Prophet (SAW)", he said.

"Today, for the first time legislation has been made in the country which is repugnant to Islam. The domestic violence law has been introduced in violation of the teachings of Holy Quran and Sunnah," he said.

The rulers are trying to portray themselves as champions of child rights, he said and criticised the rulers' bid to introduce a law against embracing Islam in teenagers. "We cannot allow the international establishment to do away with the Islamic identity of the country," he said.

The JUI-F chief said the rulers seem to be humans but they have turned to the genies and spirits. They are running the country on the basis of magic, genies and spirits, he said.

The Maulana said that the sustainability and development of countries depended on economic power in the contemporary world. The USSR was a great military power. But it was disintegrated due to the economic debacle, he said.

The economy of Pakistan is facing the worst crisis under the current rulers. The growth rate has gone below zero per cent. The price hike has made life miserable for the people. The value of the dollar has reached Rs 172 during the current rule.

Jobs have been snatched from three million more people in the country instead of giving employment to 10 million youth, he said.

The Maulana said the foreign policy of the current rulers has proved to be a total mess. "Our time-tested friend China is annoyed with the country. China was making a huge investment in the country, which he has stopped. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has come to a complete standstill," he added.

About Afghanistan, he said the US made an agreement with the Taliban after 20 years of their struggle. Now the US is talking about human rights and women rights in the war-ravaged country. Let stability return to Afghanistan. They would take care of everyone's rights then, he said.

"The US, which used lethal bombs against the people of Afghanistan for 20 years, is now talking of human rights which is strange," he said.

"The US is strengthening India against Pakistan. Iran, our Muslim neighbour, is supporting India," he added.

"The US president is not making a telephone call to the prime minister and the Indian Prime Minister is not picking up his phone. All this happened because the foreign countries knew that he [Imran Khan] was not the real ruler of the country but a selected one", he said.