Home Media Reports 2002 Cowasjee be …

Sunday May 19, 2002 -- Rabi-ul-Awal 06, 1423 A.H.

‘Cowasjee be stopped from insulting blasphemy law, Constitution’

KARACHI: The central leaders of the Aalami Majlise Tahaffuze Khatme Nubuwwat on Saturday criticised Aredshir Cowasjee for keeping on putting his nose in the Muslims religious affairs by insulting Islam, making the blasphemy law and constitutional amendments regarding the Qadianis a major target of his criticism, and termed his allegations against their party as baseless.

Mufti Muhammad Jamil Khan, Maulana Saeed Ahmed Jalalpuri and Maulana Nazeer Ahmed Tunsavi said the false allegations against their party were never proved to be true. They said their party is the only representative party of the Muslims the world over, which is working peacefully for the protection of the honour of Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaho Alaihe Wasallam) and the belief of finality of Prophethood within the parameters at the constitution and law, leaving apart all the sectarian and political differences.

The leaders said Cowasjee, despite being a Zoroastrian, kept on putting his nose very often in the religious affairs of the Muslims by insulting Islam. They said the blasphemy law and constitutional amendments regarding the Qadianis had been a major target of his criticism for a long period. They said if the insult of a single person is held to be a crime then why was the insult of the prophets not held the same.

They said the blasphemy law for religion is in force the world over including the US and UK. If a person was found guilty of blaspheming their religion in their country, they said, he was given punishment by them under the law. They asked if the same law was in force in Pakistan then why had it become the target of criticism. They said the insult of honourable personalities of every religion is held a crime the world over and the person found guilty of that crime was punished for hurting the religious sentiments of the followers of that religion. They said at the moment, the personality of Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaho Alaihe Wasallam) was held as a status of honour and respect the world over and even the non-Muslims consider him honourable and praiseworthy. The law for punishing the blasphemer for such an honourable personality is right by all means. They termed the demand to repeal the blasphemy law and giving every person the freedom to blaspheme the Holy Prophet (PBUH) a clear insanity. They said the blasphemy law regarding punishment for blasphemy Prophet Jesus (Alehe Salam) is in force in the UK since 1850. They said the Muslims had ideological differences with the Qadianis because the foundation of Qadianis is laid on the blasphemy of Islam, that was why the National Assembly of Pakistan, on September 7,1974, declared the Qadianis as non Muslims in the light of the unanimous consensus of the Ummah, and from the session courts to the Supreme Court and Federal Shariat Court all the courts confirmed that decision. But the Qadianis, they said, had not accepted that decision, and since then, they started to ridicule Islam, constitution and law.

On the protest of Muslims of the state against their unlawful activities, the govt put a stop to them from ridiculing the religion and constitution by promulgating an ordinance. They said since then Cowasjee had taken the task in favour of the Qadianis to ridicule the religion and law, and on the instigation of the Qadianis, he started targeting the constitutional amendments that were about the Islamic canons, especially the blasphemy law and law meant to stop the Qadianis from ridiculing the religion.

They said to prove the Qadianis as innocent and the Muslims as tyrants is a habit of Cowasjee. They said his articles against Islam and Muslims which he wrote in the past were on record. They said Cowasjee had been involved in passing derogatory remarks against Azaan. They said he launched a campaign against the newly constructed Mosques and the mosques that were constructed earlier in the recent past on which he had to face severe criticism on the part of public for hurting their religious sentiments. They said if Cowasjee did not try to amend his pattern and kept on doing so then the Muslims of the country would make a demand for his ouster from the country. They said to APNS authorities that they publish the articles of Cowasjee, which contain such blasphemy, but did not publish the articles containing truth about the Issue, terming it to be not fit for publication. They insisted for a change in that attitude and said it should be avoided to hurt the religious sentiments of the Muslims by respecting the public opinion, but if to publish it becomes necessary on any pressure or by some other reason, then the opposing views should also be published.

Source: www.jang.com.pk/thenews/may2002-daily/19-05-2002/metro/k4.htm