New Delhi: Fresh trouble broke out in Pakistan’s Lal Masjid during Friday prayers when devotees refused to offer namaz at the mosque and started raising anti-government slogans, leading to tension in the area.
The Muslims, who had gathered at the mosque for namaz, were demanding the release of Abdul Aziz, the chief of the mosque. Aziz was arrested on July 4, 2007 during the operation against Lal Masjid and Jamia Hafsa.
The protesters also beat up some photographers and journalists and painted a part of the mosque red.
Police was rushed to the area to main peace and calm and the devotees later offered namaz outside the Masjid. The Police Commissioner for Islamabad, Khalid Parvez, told CNN-IBN that police reached the spot and the situation was under control.
On Thursday, the Pakistan government had informally opened the Lal Masjid for prayers after renovation done by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
The CDA demolished buildings of Jamia Hafsa and a children library located adjacent to the Lal Masjid. The mosque, which was famous for its red colour, has been painted off-white.
The Azan for Asar prayer was recited on Thursday after almost 14 days of the military operation. A local journalist, Shargeel Amjad Rao, recited the Azan and led the Asar prayer.
Religious Affairs Minister Mohammad Ejazul Haq along with a media team offered the prayer at Lal Masjid. Haq said he hoped that in future ulema would avoid creating such an environment, which may lead to incidents like the Lal Masjid operation.
He said all the mosques demolished in the capital would be reconstructed soon. He said tenders in this regard had been invited. The minister also announced that the educational expenditures of the students of Jamia Hafsa would be borne by the government.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani Interior Ministry informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that 51 more detainees of the Lal-Masjid operation were being released that day.
The superintendent of Adyala Jail told a two-member bench in the court that a total of 116 people are currently detained in jail, including 16 below-18 years of age.
The jail official said four detainees, including Maulana Abdul Aziz, the chief of the Lal Masjid (or Red Mosque), his wife Umme Hasaan and two daughters had been detained in Simly dam rest house, which has been declared a sub-jail.
A total of 620 persons were detained in Adyala Jail after the Lal Masjid operation, out of which 508 have been released and 112 are still in the jail, the jail official said, adding that the total number of detained persons would be 50 after releasing another 62.
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