Shias in Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (POGB) are agitated and protesting against the Sunni cleric Qazi Nisar for insulting Imam Mehdi and calling him fake.
Recently, a Shia cleric Allama Syed Ali Rizvi lambasted Qazi Nisar and pledged to break his jaws during the Arabeen procession in Skardu. He said, “Imaam Hussain se ahad, Immam-e-Zaman se ahad hum dat jaenge, mar jaenge magar hum Imam ko nahi chhorenge.” (Taking oath of Imam Hussain and Imam-e-Zaman, we will die but will never leave Imam). He went on to say, “Ya Imam-e-Mehdi, jisne aapki ghustakhi ki hai, uskke jabrdon ko tod kar rakh denge.” (Oh! Imam Mehdi, whosoever, has insulted you, we will break his jaws).
He asked the people in prosession that whether they were ready, to which, the crowd raised their hands in affirmation. This was followed by loud sloganeering saying – “Ye lashkar kiska – Mehdi ka” (Whose procession is this? – Its Imam Mendi’s).
In another protest rally in Kharmang, Shia cleric Sheikh Akbar Rajai demanded strict punishment for the Sunni cleric Qazi Nisar for insulting Iman Mehdi. Amidst his address, the gathered crown chanted “ghustakh-e-nabi ki ek hi saza, sar tan se zuda” (Insulting Prophet has only one punishment, behading).
Additionally, not only in POGB, Shia clerics in other parts have also erupted in protest. In Karachi, a Shia cleric Allama Sadiq Raza Taqvi addressed a rally and stated warned Pakistan govt that it should promptly arrest Sunni cleric Qazi Nisar for allegedly insulting the Hidden Imam. He also warned the govt that it should not test their patience. He said, “If there’s no action against him, we shall kill him ourselves.”
A deliberate attempt to ethnically cleanse Shias
Shias are enraged over the Sunnis insulting Imam Hussain and Imam Mehdi. Moreover, they are also agitated against the controversial law that calls the criticism of Yazid, Aby Sufiyan and Mu’awiya as blasphemy. As per the Shia community, there has been a fundamental difference between them and Sunnis and, thus, making offense is a deliberate attempt to carry out ethnic cleansing. The Pakistani ‘establishment’ is trying to create resentment between the communities so that Shias would get purged from the region.
POGB, which is illegally occupied by Pakistan for more than seventy-six years, is a Shia majority region. In recent years, the oppressive policies of Pakistan has made them vocal and so they have been demanding their right. The calls of unification with India have also been raised by the people of POGB from time-to-time. Pakistani ‘establishment’, which wants to sustain its illicit hold and dominate over the region, has now come up with another radical and inhumane policy of exploiting religious differentiation to harass and suppress the Shia community.