LAHORE: General Secretary of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) Liaquat Baloch on Monday said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had issued a political press release which was unbecoming of a military force, DawnNews reported.

Speaking to media representatives after a meeting of the party’s Majlis-i-Shura (Advisory Council), Baloch said the army had no right to interfere in matters of politics.

On Sunday, JI chief Syed Munawar Hasan’s recent controversial statements of giving the certificate of martyrdom to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakeemullah Mehsud and deriding military personnel who have rendered sacrifices in the war against terrorists, drew strong ire of the army which asked the JI chief to tender an unconditional apology.

Earlier today, the JI chief said he was standing by his statement in which he termed Mehsud a ‘martyr’, as his party’s Majlis-i-Shura (Advisory Council) met today to discuss the issues of local body elections, drone attacks and the controversy caused by the ‘martyr’ remark.

During the Majlis-i-Shura meeting, Baloch said the country would have to get out of the drone war in order to establish sustainable peace.

Speaking to DawnNews prior to the meeting, Baloch had said that Hasan did not attack the reputation of the army therefore no questions should be aimed at his statements.

He further said that martyrdom was a dignified rank which could only be conferred by “none other than Allah”.

On Nov 1, Hakimullah Mehsud, chief of the TTP, was killed in a US drone strike in the North Waziristan tribal region and was labelled by Fazlur Rehman and Munawar Hasan — the chiefs of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam - Fazl and JI — a ‘martyr’.

Opinion

Editorial

Under siege
Updated 03 May, 2024

Under siege

Whether through direct censorship, withholding advertising, or sinister measures such as harassment, legal intimidation and violence, the press in Pakistan navigates a hazardous terrain.
Meddlesome ways
03 May, 2024

Meddlesome ways

AFTER this week’s proceedings in the so-called ‘meddling case’, it appears that the majority of judges...
Mass transit mess
03 May, 2024

Mass transit mess

THAT Karachi — one of the world’s largest megacities — does not have a mass transit system worth the name is ...
Punishing evaders
02 May, 2024

Punishing evaders

THE FBR’s decision to block mobile phone connections of more than half a million individuals who did not file...
Engaging Riyadh
Updated 02 May, 2024

Engaging Riyadh

It must be stressed that to pull in maximum foreign investment, a climate of domestic political stability is crucial.
Freedom to question
02 May, 2024

Freedom to question

WITH frequently suspended freedoms, increasing violence and few to speak out for the oppressed, it is unlikely that...