ISLAMABAD: Pakistani authorities have arrested 33 religious leaders in Punjab province in a crackdown against militant groups from majority Sunni and minority Sikh Muslims officials said Feb.24.
They said those netted in police swoops overnight included top leaders of the Sunni Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) and its main Shiite rivals, Sipah-e-Mohammad (SPM) and Tehreek-i-Jaferia Pakistan (TJP).
At least 19 SSP and 14 SMP and TJP leaders were taken in custody for their alleged involvement in “instigating” religious clashes and “heinous crimes.” The action follows a recent upsurge in the sectarian violence resulting in scores of fatalities across the country. Similar crackdowns were likely in southern Sind, particularly Karachi where continued political and sectarian unrest last year claimed some 700 lives.
SSP legislator Azam Tariq, who recently said his party would kill blasphemers if the law did not, has reportedly gone underground.
Heavy police contingents were posted outside mosques and madrasas or religious schools, run by Islamic organizations who planned to protest against the verdict at the recent congregations. The schools are the breeding grounds of Islamic militants in the country.
Senator Sami Ul-Haq, who runs the largest madrassa, has warned Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto that she would face a force similar to the Islamic Theology Students’ Taleban militia sweeping Afghanistan if her government interfered with the madrasas.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 3, 1995
