ISLAMABAD: 21st Constitutional Amendment has targeted the seminaries as religious terrorism was mentioned whereas other terrorist acts were not included that shows the discriminatory policy of government towards religious educational institutes. This was said by Vice President of Jammiat Ullma Islam (JUI), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Ex Federal Minister for Tourism, Maulana Atta Ur Rehman while his visit to The Patriot office here in Islamabad on Friday. He said JUI will not endorse any law that target some specific group or institute especially seminaries as they are serving Islam and Muslims. He said no seminary is involved or connected to any militant group. Our only reservation is that any legislation pertaining to safety and security of the country should be made on equality basis and no specific sect should be targeted or left behind.
He said lawmakers should also consider terrorism by the name of nationalism and provincialism as serious threat to the peace cause and that should also be the part of national action plan against terrorism. “We educate our youngsters for fifteen years on Jihhad and when they lift weapons against anti Muslim powers we declare them as terrorist” he added. There are as many as 2600 registered seminaries of Deoband sect in the country. On a question about the registration of seminaries he said registration is started since 1994 and in the government of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) it was decided to audit, verify the syllabus and other confirmations been made to keep a check on the activities of seminaries across the country. He was of the view that declaring 10 percent seminaries involved in terrorism activist by the Interior Minister is confederacy against the remaining 90 percent. He said there is a need to build consciences and government should involve all religious groups while making decisions regarding law and order situation that is the only way out to curb the terrorism from the country. He said this government does not have any foreign, interior and economic policy that should be the benchmark instead of targeting seminaries.