‘Fasaad’ in garb of ‘Jihad’

Not an iota of disagreement exists in any section of society with the points raised by Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa in his latest speech in which he urged the world to do more to curb the menace of terrorism. He also issued a stern warning to the people “misguided by unscrupulous elements”, urging them to give up ‘Fasaad’.

The speech delivered by the COAS on the Defence of Pakistan Day was a good attempt at highlighting the actual facts at the highest level of the national institution, which has borne the brunt, staying at the forefront of war on terror, but with perseverance and conviction.

Most importantly, the confusion surrounding the concept of Jihad has been very well cleared as, according to the Army chief, “Islam clearly states that the right to declare Jihad is the responsibility of the state and hence this right should only remain with the state.

The people misguided by unscrupulous elements should give up. Whatever they are doing is not ‘Jihad’ but ‘Fasaad’. Your country and your people are being hurt the most by your actions".

This clarity on the part of the armed forces top brass is a clear-cut message to dozens of militant outfits operating in the name of religion (their own interpretation of religion) that they have no right to wage any holy war or the so-called Jihad, which is the sole prerogative of the state to be exercised strictly within the prescribed parameters.

The Army chief’s statement also makes us realise once again that the victims of all such nefarious activities or acts of terrorism are innocent Pakistanis, whose faith in Islamic ideology is no less impeccable than any Jihadi. Then what are the Jihadis nay Fasaadis gaining out of their brand of holy war waged against their own brethren-in-faith, who are more faithful than anyone else?

If we apply any shade of logic or reason to this question, the only answer that is found out, is that all brands and genres of the so-called Jihadis and Jihadi outfits are doing disservice to Islam, which is a universally acknowledged religion of peace and tolerance.

It is not so that those in this dirty, killing business are not aware of the falsity of their propagated beliefs. The ordinary cadre of operatives may not be fully aware, however, because they are usually misled by the ‘religious façade or religious cover’ of terrorism as presented by the masterminds of terrorism.

But the masterminds and spearheads of these outfits, who are, in fact, beneficiaries of millions and billions that they mint in a jiffy through threats and intimidation (and where threats are resisted, they resort to practical violence and killings), know that they are totally on the wrong, forbidden path. However, somehow they have been able to mislead a number of people, especially youth, on the basis of their propaganda (but the fact remains that they misguide other youth not their own sons and daughters). It was in this backdrop that the COAS General Bajwa also appealed to these youth the other day to shun joining the ranks of Daesh/ISIS or other militant outfits.

The advice proffered by the Army chief to the youth is a piece of sanity. The youth with the tendencies to carry out struggle for their rights or for struggle against their deprivations, must realise the difference between genuine, consistent struggle and terrorism for the sake of benefiting the masters, who are at war against their own unarmed, harmless brethren, either for hegemony, money or for pursuing the agendas of others, who have no concern for our security or survival.

There is no harm in being enamoured with a militaristic lifestyle. Such youth with this proclivity should join the armed forces or paramilitary forces or other such departments, instead of joining private militias which just can’t remain patriotic given the fact that their own existence is endangered when they “surrender their authority” to the state.

As for the masterminds of terrorism, they are rather more criminally liable than their foreign masters because they do not raise questions when they are ‘assigned’ death missions mostly against innocent people of their own faith. This proves that these masterminds are accomplices in this war waged by them against humanity, either out of their sluggishness and lust for power and pelf that stops them from asking questions or because they join hands with forces of destruction by design, driven by their own hatred for humanity.

It is our sheer bad luck that Pakistan has suffered the most at the hands of terrorists in all respects. The world must recognise this fact, but yet greater recognition ought to be given to the established reality which has also been emphasised by Army chief that only Pakistan has seen this level of success within limited resources from the operations carried out to wipe out the terrorists from its soil like Sher Dil, Rah-i-Raast, Rah-i-Nijat, Zarb-i-Azab and now Raddul Fasaad.

Why the world at large and the US in particular are ignoring this success story which, in fact, is not only Pakistan’s success story but also that of the whole world? Hasn’t Pakistan gifted peace to the world through so many sacrifices?, in fact, is not only Pakistan’s success story but also that of the whole world? Hasn’t Pakistan gifted peace to the world through so many sacrifices?