NEWS:  Pakistan Ulema Council Chairman Maulana Tahir Ashrafi has said that the entire Pakistan is saddened by the Jaranwala carnage. He said that Islam teaches respect for the places of worship and holy books of the minority community. He spoke to the media along with Bishop Nadeem Kamran and Archbishop Sebastian Shaw. The Maulana said: “We are ashamed of what had happened in Jaranwala. We have failed to fulfil our responsibilities”.  About mob violence, the Maulana said “I apologize to the Christian leaders with folded hands”. He remarked that had the criminals of Joseph Colony mayhem been punished, Jaranwala would not have happened today. This case should be tried expeditiously in one month and guilty punished. The prosecution should not be prolonged. The government should take steps to restore all the burnt churches. On this occasion, Bishop Nadeem Kamran called for a full-fledged investigation into Jaranwala incident saying that holy books were burnt in the church, and graves were vandalized in Christian cemeteries. “Who will remove the fear created in the minds of Christian children by this incident? The attack in Jaranwala is an attack on the reputation of Pakistan”. (Qudrat Daily)

• Police have registered cases against more than 600 people for the Jaranwala carnage.  They are charged with setting fire to the church buildings and houses of the Christian community. Following the incident, the Punjab government called in the Rangers. It also deployed 3,000 police personnel. According to police and local sources, the violence started when some locals alleged that several pages of the Holy Quran were found near a house at Jaranwala Cinema Chowk where two Christian brothers live. The district administration has imposed Section 144 in the area for seven days and banned all kinds of gatherings. (Dawn Daily)

• Punjab Province Minorities Affairs Minister Tahir Khalil Sindhu said visited the Jaranwala Christian Colony and alleged that the State has completely failed in providing protection to the minorities. He demanded that the CJP should take suo moto of this heartbreaking incident and give exemplary punishment to the culprits. Addressing a press conference near the Saint Anthony Catholic Church at Regal Chowk, Chairman Pakistan Ulema Council Allama Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi apologized to the Christian Community with folded hands for the Jaranwala carnage. (Nai Baat)

• United Ulema Board Punjab Chairman Allama Dr. Ragib Naeemi and Bishop of Lahore Nadeem Kamran visited the Nai Baat Office and discussed the issue of religious harmony with Editor Najam Wali Khan and others. The Bishop said that the Jaranwala incident was a conspiracy because no one would write such wrong things and provide photos and numbers also. He added that we should teach our school children to respect each other. Allama Ragib Naeemi said that it is essential to know the real facts because the mentality of a mob is different and common people become victims of some miscreants. Naeemi expressed remorse over the local ulema supporting attacks against the Christian community. He claimed that more than 80% of the Imams and Khateebs in our mosques are under educated. There are more than 52 thousand mosques in Punjab and only 450 Mosques are registered with Auqaf (Endowment) Board. The Government cannot take all the mosques under its administration and hence practically the mosques are managed by local trusts and committees. However, the Government should design an online course of 6 months to 1 year duration for all the Imams and Khateebs of all the faiths.  (Nai Baat)

• Christian community staged a protest in Peshawar against the Jaranwala carnage. They were demanding the Government and the Chief Justice to take notice of the heinous crime and punish the culprit. (Urdu Point)

• A large number of Christian lawyers protested at the premises of the Lahore High Court, against the Jaranwala tragedy. The lawyers raised slogans and demanded that the accused be brought to justice. (Daily Pakistan)

• A person who had provoked people by announcing from Jaranwala Masjid was arrested. The police say that the accused Yasin was arrested with the help of a video that came to light on social media. The police is now making efforts to identify and arrest more suspects involved in the riots. The government has ordered a high-level inquiry to nab the culprits. More than 100 people were arrested. (Roznama Intekhab, Daily Dharti, Daily Khabrain)

• Imran Khan has said that he is ready to stay in the jail even for a thousand years, according to the lawyer Umair Niazi who had met him.  Talking to the media outside the jail where the PTI chief is incarcerated, Umair quoted Imran as saying that “I don’t care if I don’t get facilities, it doesn’t matter if I am kept in jail even for a thousand years. I am ready for it because one has to offer sacrifice for the freedom of the country”.  The advocate added that Imran is fine health-wise. “His beard has grown”.  The administration has provided him with glasses and shaving equipment today. Out of six-member legal team, he alone was allowed to visit Imran. “We will file a contempt of court petition against the jailer’s behaviour because he did not implement the court order on basic facilities to Imran”. (Aeen Daily)

• Hasan Niazi, nephew of PTI Chairman Imran Khan, will be tried in a military court for his involvement in May 9 riots.  He has since been transferred from Quetta to Rawalpindi. He will be shifted soon to Lahore jail.  (Ummat)

• Pakistan Muslim League (N) leadership yesterday discussed the possibility of seeking bail   for party chief Nawaz Sharif from the Islamabad High Court. After getting the bail the road to his return from London will be cleared where has been living for four years. For the past few days, the senior party leaders and legal experts have been considering the right time for Nawaz Sharif’s return and the cases he is facing in Pakistan. Sources say that if “some issues” related to Nawaz Sharif’s return home are settled, Shahbaz Sharif will leave for London to meet his elder brother. If everything goes according to plan, i.e., if Nawaz Sharif gets bail from the Islamabad High Court, he will reach Islamabad where he will address a rally at the Parade Ground. (Dawn Daily)

• Taking part in a TV discussion, PML N senior Irfan Siddiqui said that Nawaz Sharif will return home in the third week of September and launch the party’s poll campaign. He said that Nawaz Sharif wants the election not to be delayed. The Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial is retiring on 17th September and will be succeeded by Justice Qazi Faiz Isa.  So it means Nawaz Sharif’s return will take place after the retirement of the CJP Bandial. (Roznama Intekhab)

• Announcing the schedule for new delimitation of constituencies based on the recent digital census, the Election Commission said new elections are not possible in the next 90 days.  It said the delimitation work will be completed by December 14. Only there afterwards, the poll schedule will be announced, according to the EC. (Awami Awaz)

• A representative nine-member delegation of the Sikh community living in Pakistan Thursday met the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Umar Atta Bandial and informed him about the problems of their community. CJP assured them of raising their issues before the relevant authorities. Samuel Pyara, Chairman of the Implementation of Minority Rights Forum led the delegation. (Jang)

• Journalists meeting under the aegis of National Press Club have condemned he lethal attack on Khuzdar Press Club President Siddique Mengal. If someone thinks that by torturing, they would stop journalists from doing their work, they are wrong. The meeting demanded that the IG Police should take immediate notice of the attack on Mengal, and bring the culprits to book. (Express Daily)

• Reporters Without Borders (R SF), an international media watchdog, has called on the government of Pakistan to repeal the latest amendments to PEMRA law and the Official Secrets Amendment Act. These laws were hastily adopted by the National Assembly shortly before it was dissolved. In a statement, the RSF said the government should work with civil society on genuine reforms that protect the freedom of the press and the right to information. All these laws, drafted without consulting the civil society, pose serious threats to the freedom of the press. Instead of improving the situation of the media, they threaten them with censorship. The statement pointed out that PEMRA has now been given a much wider discretionary powers to suspend any media outlet or cancel its license for spreading fake news and fine up to one crore rupees. (Dawn Daily)

• The Justice Minister in the Afghan Transitional Government, Sheikh Abdul Hakim Shariai, says the activities of political parties have completely stopped because they have no Sharia status.   The interests of the nation are not connected with the political parties and people don’t like them. Presenting his ministry’s one-year report card, he said that his ministry has drafted 38 legal documents, 10 policy texts, and one law and sent to the concerned authorities for approval. (Ummat)

• Kharan Bazar was shut down for the third day against the abduction and non-recovery of Mir Hafizullah Loraja, a well-known businessman, politician and tribal leader. Leaders of political parties, business community, Hindu community and civil society participated in the sit-in against forced disappearance of businessman. (Urdu Point)

EDITORIALS

• The overall conditions in the country are far from satisfactory. We have economic issues with poverty and unemployment on steady rise. And on top of all this, law and order situation is far from good. Media persons are getting killed in daring day light acts. Dacoits keep kidnapping elderly and children too. The cases of little girls like Fatima are coming to light, speaking volumes about rampant child labor in the country. On the other hand, we are getting to see several instances of rising fundamentalism leaving the message that sense of tolerance is steadily on decline today. People give hasty reactions without verifying facts and ultimately there is big tension and violence and at the end of the day there is un-repairable damage. As and when we have incidents of blasphemy in the country, it is people and not the State showing reactions and later developments bring not only harm and damage in economic terms but also a big bad name for the country. In recent blasphemy carnage at Jaranwala, a suburb of Faisalabad city, surcharged mobs had four churches of Christians afire, and did not spare their houses, shops, vehicles and other goods from vandalism.  Christian priest told the media that the home of blasphemy accused Christian also was set afire. Now, Punjab police has filed a case and imposed section 144 till peace returns in the area. Whatever be facts behind Jaranwala incidents, truth will come out only after thorough investigations, but the reactions that  have come from extremists is not acceptable. The authorities must institute enquiries into the mayhem at Jaranwala without wasting any time and must take measures to ensure safety of Christians and their places of worship. (Edits – Kawish, Ibrat)

• Our constitution might give protection to non-Muslims, but they are unsafe in the country. They often fall victim to emotionally charged mobs. Their houses burnt; their places of worship demolished. Sadly, whenever when such acts take place, there is no punishment and as a result, such incidents keep getting repeated. What has recently happened with Christians in Punjab’s Jaranwala suburb of Faisalabad city, has dented Pakistan’s image, and sent the message across the world that non-Muslim localities are not safe in Pakistan. Despite our having every kind of law to check such communal carnage, there is no implementation of these laws. That is why we see mobs around in every street taking laws into their hands. Time the rulers worry whether we can keep the country peaceful in such environs? Can non-Muslims remain safe in midst of such surroundings? (Sindh Express Edit)

• The burning of Jaranwala Christian churches by the mob in response to the alleged accusation of desecration of the Quran is extremely tragic. According to the police FIR, a person had written insulting words on the pages of the Holy Quran with a red pen. Enraged people vandalized and set the churches on fire. Christian leaders dismissed the allegation as false and accused the police of standing by as silent spectators. This incident is condemnable in every respect. If a person is accused of blasphemy, he should be investigated and dealt with according to Sharia law. But no mob can be allowed to take the law into their hands. (Edits – Jasarat, Daily Pak, Jinnah, Islam, Nai Baat, Jang)

• The Election Commission (EC) has decided to delimit new constituencies as per the digital census 2023. Following this decision, it has become almost impossible to hold general elections within the constitutionally mandated period of 90 days from the date of dissolution of National Assembly. The EC has sought assistance from the provincial governments and the statistical office regarding the new constituencies. According to the current schedule, the preliminary report of the constituencies will be published on October 9. Objections can be filed there afterwards. By December 9, the Election Commission will hear these objections. The final constituencies will be published on December 14, and the election schedule can be released after that. All this makes it impossible to hold the election this year. Earlier, when the Council of Common Interests (CCI) approved the results of the Digital Census 2023, it was feared that the general elections may not be held within the constitutional period of three months. A major legal complication regarding delimitation is that according to the new census, a constitutional amendment is necessary to determine the share of the provinces in the National Assembly. But this is not possible under the present caretaker regime. (Edit-Dunya Daily)

• Appointment of Justice (R) Maqbul Baqar as the Caretaker Chief Minister of Sindh based on across-the-board consensus is a welcome development.  After the unexpected selection of Anwar Kakar as Interim Prime Minister, there was speculation that the name for Sindh Chief Minister would also come from somewhere else. But that did not happen. It is also a fact that as per norms the outgoing Sindh CM Murad Ali Shah and the Leader of Opposition were to decide the name but both decision makers had no power. The real decision makers were PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto, MQM Convener Khalid Maqbul Siddiqui and GDA. Media was also showing some names including that of Justice (R) Maqbul Baqar, and finally his name was finalized from all stakeholders within Sindh. Justice Baqar is a Karachiite. In 2007 when Gen. Musharraf imposed emergency and asked judges to take oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO), Justice Baqar refused and was deposed. A year later he was reinstated as the Sindh High Court Judge after lawyers and civil society movement succeeded in restoring free judiciary. In 2013, Justice Maqbul Baqar became Chief Justice Sindh High Court and retired in April 2022 as the Supreme Court Judge. Sindh is a throne of thorns with extreme troubles. Lawlessness in cities like Karachi is at its peak; dacoits in the Kachay area are still giving sleepless nights to security forces. Police look completely helpless in controlling the fast-increasing crime graph across the province. People have great hope in the new chief minister and if he is able to change the scenario he will be remembered forever. (Nai Baat Edit)

• According to Bloomberg, thousands of factories in Pakistan will be forced to shut down by the shortage of dollars which is affecting the import of raw materials. While the price of petrol has increased by 37 rupees, the price of diesel has gone up by 40 rupees during the past two weeks. The industries which are already struggling for survival after the sharp increase in electricity tariffs, cannot bear this increase. Local business leaders have also warned that more industrial units will now shut down. The factories forced to close cut across sectors and cover textiles, automobiles, and chemicals amongst others. Due to expensive energy and non-availability of imported raw materials, production of major industries actually fell by more than 10% on an annual basis in the Financial Year 2023. More than 70 lakh people became unemployed. Unemployment is expected to increase further. The caretaker government should consider these factors before taking any drastic decision regarding the economy. (Edit-Dunya Daily)

• At times, we get to read reports of people getting killed in kabila clashes and at times we get to read reports of girls done to death and their bodies thrown around. According to some such reports from Ranipur (Sindh), one 10-year-old labourer, Fatima, was killed in mysterious conditions some days ago and body was handed over to family without any information to police; the family also quietly buried the body without post mortem. Later, some pictures went viral on social media showing a girl without clothes and dying in one room; videos showed also some marks of violence on her body. Khairpur Area SSP took note of the incident and ordered an enquiry. If Sindh’s well-wishers do not come forward to put an end to rule of beastliness, then none will be safe here. Hence, it is time social activists take efforts against rowdy elements who are playing with humanity in the Sindh. (Ibrat Edit) ####