Sanaullah says JUI-F chief's remarks against martyrs were 'inappropriate', but unintended

PML-N leader and Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah on Friday said that Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s controversial remarks about army martyrs were “inappropriate”, but were unintended.

Speaking on Geo News programme ‘Naya Pakistan’, Sanaullah said, “He (Fazl) always speaks in a balanced and measured manner, and his choice of words is usually very careful… In my opinion, he did not intend to say what he said.”

“The words uttered about the martyrs were inappropriate — this cannot be endorsed,” he said.

The PML-N leader added that if Fazl withdrew his remarks, it would be regarded as a statesmanlike gesture; however, he had “taken a different position”.

Responding to a question about Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl’s (JUI-F) warning to stage a protest outside the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi, Sanaullah said that this would also be “inappropriate”.

“This cannot be allowed. This will be considered a direct attack on Pakistan’s defence. It would not be an attack on GHQ; it would be an attack on Pakistan,” the ruling party leader said.

He also rejected JUI-F’s claim that there was a propaganda campaign against Fazl over his remarks, saying there was “no propaganda against him”.

Sanaullah stated that Fazl’s remarks about army martyrs were “so damaging that they could cause demotivation”.

“People who guard the frontiers and sacrifice their lives cannot do so without motivation. No one can sacrifice their life for a salary or money.”

He also endorsed the reactions from political and public circles against the JUI-F chief’s remarks.

“The reaction was necessary; it might have restored the trust of the families of the martyrs.”

‘JUI-F ready to march to Islamabad’

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa JUI-F Emir Maulana Attaur Rehman said on Friday that workers would not hesitate to march on Islamabad if the party ordered them to do so for the sake of democracy in the country.

Addressing a press conference at the party’s provincial headquarters, Rehman said that some quarters, unhappy with the party’s successful public meeting in Kasur on July 11, had taken half a sentence from the JUI-F chief’s speech and created a media storm across the country.

He noted that there had been no mention of the remarks in the print, electronic or social media on July 12; however, by July 13, an “outcry” had been manufactured over the comments, which were taken out of context.

Rehman further said that the JUI-F chief had been asked to apologise for remarks made at a public meeting in Kasur. He added that those criticising Fazl should have the courage to broadcast his speech in its entirety.

“Maulana was vilified on social media over an out-of-context excerpt from his speech,” he said.

The senior party leader said that the entire campaign was aimed at diminishing Fazl’s importance in Pakistan’s politics and reducing the party to a single region or province.

He also claimed that the JUI-F chief’s growing influence was unsettling his political opponents.

“KP JUI-F fully supports its party emir and the central party narrative,” he stated, adding, “The sacrifices offered by the party leadership and workers are unparalleled in the country, and 83 of its workers laid down their lives in a single gathering in Bajaur alone.”

He said that despite the killing of its leaders and workers, Fazl’s narrative did not pander to emotions and the party continued to stand with the state and democracy. However, he said that the JUI-F chief himself had been targeted three times, his house in Dera Ismail Khan had been attacked, while his brothers and sons had also been targeted.

“We do not know what the state wants to convey and achieve,” he said, adding, “The JUI-F has also stood with the state and its institutions, be it during the war with India or the war against terrorism, when the party gathered religious scholars from across the country to issue a fatwa against terrorism.”

He said that the state and its institutions should register a case against Fazl if they dared to do so.

Rehman said that KP JUI-F workers were ready to go to Islamabad if the leadership directed them to do so in the interest of democracy.

In response to a question, he said that the JUI-F chief’s speech should be aired in full so that the public could understand the context in which those remarks were made. ...