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Lal Masjid cleric apologises after cases registered
KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: Submitting to a huge outcry from civil society, the chief cleric of Lal Masjid, Maulana Abdul Aziz, apologised for failing to unconditionally condemn the Peshawar massacre carried out by Taliban on December 16.
“I condemn the killing of schoolchildren and apologise,” Aziz said while talking to local media on Sunday. MQM on Sunday registered a FIR against the controversial cleric in Karachi while similar FIR has been registered in Islamabad. The cleric admitted he realised his mistake only after his followers convinced him. He clarified that he did not threaten any member of civil society and police have registered FIR against him under social pressure which is not a good precedent.
Aziz said his personal opinion was unnecessarily propagated in the media. “I forgave Musharraf for launching military operation against us, how it is possible that I was not saddened by the killing of innocent schoolchildren,” he added. Aziz said that Altaf Hussain’s statement against Lal Masjid was provocative and warrants legal action. “I could not see any condemnation against such a blatant statement,” he complained. “This is not a good idea to burn sacred places,” Aziz said.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk