HYDERABAD: Speakers at different programmes held to mark the sixth anniversary of Army Public School (APS) Peshawar tragedy in several Sindh towns on Wednesday paid glowing tribute to slain students and urged the government to let educational institutions function under standard operating procedures for coronavirus.

In Hyderabad, religious scholars at Ulema Mashaikh Qaumi Yakjehati Convention paid homage to APS martyrs who fell victim to terrorism on Dec 16, 2014, and said that Dec 16, 1971, and Dec 16, 2014, were the blackest days in Pakistan’s history. The convention was organised under the aegis of district police peace committee.

Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan-Noorani president Sahibzada Abul Khair Mohammad Zubair said that both the tragedies were caused by enemies of Pakistan and Islam. Pakistan army had challenged enemies at all fronts.

Jamiat-i-Mashaikh Pakistan secretary general Pir Haji Gulshan Illahi Qadri said that people belonging to different sects and ideologies were busy in promoting national integration in the country.

Deputy Commissioner Fuad Ghaffar Soomro, Abdul Waheed Qureshi, Taj Mohammad Nahiyoon, Moazzam Shah Kazmi, Hafiz Khalid Dhamrah, Maulana Saadullah and others urged the government to let education institutions function under SOPs for coronavirus so that education process might continue uninterrupted.

The gathering adopted a joint declaration which said that the 132 students martyred in the tragedy would never be forgotten and people would always remember them in their prayers.

It said that conspirators sitting within and outside Pakistan were busy hatching conspiracies to foment ethnic and sectarian riots and condemned publication of blasphemous caricatures by some European countries.

The declaration demanded United Nations, OIC and international rights bodies to stop India from committing atrocities against people of Indian-occupied Kashmir. It also condemned conspiracies against army, judiciary and national institutions and urged the government to open shrines.

Sindh University organised a walk to commemorate the APS carnage. SU VC Prof Dr Fateh Mohammad Burfat, who led the rally, said: “We share grief of bereaved families and pray to Allah Almighty to grant them courage and fortitude to bear this loss.”

He said that extremism and terrorism were enemies of peace and human development and condemned those who facilitated scourge of terrorism had committed crimes against humanity.

Similar programmes were organised in Tando Allahyar, Matiari and Jamshoro districts.

BADIN: Speakers at a conference held to remember the APS tragedy at Darbar Hall paid tribute to the martyrs and said that even after six years the images of the grim terrorist attack were hauntingly clear in peoples’ memories.

Additional deputy commissioner-1, revenue officials, teachers, ulema and intellectuals said that Islam had nothing to do with terrorism and terrorists had no caste, creed or religion. Killing an innocent person was tantamount to killing the entire humanity, they said.

They said that sacrifices of teachers and students would always be remembered and the blood of martyrs would never dry out. They expressed sympathies with the families of martyrs and called the tragedy a great national loss.

MITHI: People of Mithi paid homage to martyrs of APS by lighting candles in front of the portraits of slain students outside local press club.

A large number of social and political activists, citizens, traders and students including Shushil Malani, Krishan Sharma, Mama Vishan Thari and Aman Gomani said that the nation would always remember those who embraced martyrdom in the terrorist attack.

They pledged support to Pakistan Army which had defeated all enemies of nation.

Similar functions were organised in Islamkot, Diplo, Nagarparkar, Dahli, Chhachhro Chelhar, Kaloi, Kantio and other towns where speakers paid homage to victims of one of the gravest tragedies in the history of the country.

Published in Dawn, December 17th, 2020