Failure to arrest Maulana Adil’s killers: Religious groups consider ‘wheel-jam strike’

KARACHI: Expressing concerns over the Sindh government’s failure to arrest the assassins of Maulana Dr Adil Khan, the Jamia Farooqia seminary’s principal, religious leaders of Deobandi school of thought have started consultations about announcing a city-wide shutterdown. Maulana Adil Khan was gunned down along with his driver in a targeted attack on Saturday.

On Monday, religious leaders, including Maulana Aurangzeb Farooqi, Qari Allah Dad, Maulana Hamad Madani, Allama Taj Muhammad Hanafi, under the banner of Karachi Ulema Committee (KUC), met Jamiaul Rasheed’s principal Maulana Abdul Raheem, Jamia Siddiqia’s principal Maulana Manzoor Mengal and teachers of Jamia Sattaria Gulshan-e-Iqbal discussed the future plan of action after the government’s failure to arrest the killers of Maulana Adil Khan.

On Sunday, leaders of the Karachi Ulema Committee, including Maulana Aurangzeb Farooqi, Jamia Uloom Islamia Binori Town’s Maulana Imdadullah, the Wifaqul Madaris Al-Arabia spokesperson Maulana Talha Rehmani, Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam-Fazl’s Qari Muhammad Usman, Maulana Qasim Mehmood, Maulana and Ibrahim Mazhar had given a 48-hour deadline to the Sindh government to arrest the killers.

“We are making deliberations with religious scholars and parties on various options, including country-wide strike, and protest rallies, to get peaceful protest registered and pressure the authorities to pay heed to our concerns,” said a scholar who was the part of the meeting.

Commenting on the provincial minister Saeed Ghani’s statement that the provincial government was unable to provide security to Maulana Adil because its hands were tied by a 2018 Supreme Court order, the religious scholar questioned that didn't apex court's orders apply to the ministers and advisers roaming in convoys of police mobiles and deputing dozens of personnel outside their houses and for picking up their children from schools.

Usman, a JUI-F leader and a leader of KUC, also demanded complete protection and security for the religious scholars and leaders. “The religious leaders and scholars will be compelled to give the call for a wheel-jam strike if the terrorists involved in the Maulana Adil’s assassination are not arrested till Tuesday (today),” he warned. “Is it a conspiracy of the government and the terrorists not to give security to religious leaders and scholars?”