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Drama outside Lal Masjid brings back painful memories

ISLAMABAD: Lal Masjid’s Maulana Abdul Aziz dodged arrest on Wednesday after his guards put up resistance to the police party when he came out of the mosque after leading Zuhr prayers despite a ban on him from the authorities. Soon after, female students of Jamia Hafsa blocked several roads, including Jinnah Avenue and the bridge near Kulsoom Plaza, to protest against the attempted arrest of the cleric. However, confusion and lack of clarity persisted over the entire episode as statements and versions from both the police and Lal Masjid failed to answer several questions. Situated at the centre of the capital city, Lal Masjid came to prominence when the then military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf carried out a full-fledged military operation in July 2007. Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital administration acknowledged that a team of Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) had gone to Lal Masjid to talk to the Maulana and ask him to present himself for clearing certain queries. Maulana Abdul Aziz evades arrest Among the queries was his re-emergence as khateeb (prayer leader) in Lal Masjid despite the fact that he had retired and was replaced and attempts to take control over the adjoining plot of the former children library as well as other matters. However, the official was not clear how Maulana Abdul Aziz reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7 and why the CTD teams could not stop him. Meanwhile, on his part, Maulana Abdul Aziz floated his video statement on social media, in which he explained how some official vehicles came to arrest him as soon as he left Lal Masjid after leading Zuhr prayers. “Two CTD vehicles chased me and stopped my car and then several personnel came out and tried to arrest me; they fired at us, which led to a fight. I got injured; you can see my car but my gun failed to fire,” Maulana Aziz said, adding that four to five CTD personnel got hold of him and pinned him down. “I was injured but with the help of divine strength I got hold of the gun of one of the personnel and started firing. In the meantime, a large number of people gathered, which gave me an opportunity to escape,” Maulana said. He said despite being injured, he was able to reach Jamia Hafsa. A footage showed his car parked on Kulsoom Plaza bridge on 7th Avenue with bullet holes on the windscreen. Following the incident, fiery speeches were made by Umme Hasaan, wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz. Later in a video message, Umme Hasaan said the Maulana fired several rounds at the CTD team and there was crossfire. He was pinned down by the CTD officials after his AK-47 ran out of bullets. However, he was able to break free and with the help of the area people, reached Jamia Hafsa in G-7. In her video message, she even sought help from the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), asking them not to stay quiet. On the other hand, Jamia Hafsa students blocked roads, including Jinnah Avenue, and staged protests. Senior officials of Islamabad police made several attempts to talk them out of their protests. During the protest, the seminary students also beat female constables with sticks. However, by evening all roads were cleared. The police did not arrest any protester, but lodged FIRs late Wednesday night against three guards of Maulana Abdul Aziz who had been arrested by the CTD. Talking to Dawn, a senior official of the capital police said all shots fired at the Maulana’s car were fired from inside by the occupant of the vehicle. Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2023
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