JI chief urges parties to oppose govt decision to send troops to Gaza

LAHORE: Chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman has called on opposition parties to openly oppose the government’s decision to send troops to Gaza, saying such a move is unacceptable and damaging to Pakistan’s dignity and sovereignty.

Addressing participants of a central training camp at Mansoorah on Thursday, Rehman strongly criticized the government’s blind reliance on US President Donald Trump, calling it equivalent to submission before unjust global powers. He said the prime minister’s move to nominate a US president, whom he said was destroying global peace, for the Nobel Peace Prize had seriously damaged national honour.

The JI chief condemned a proposed bill in the Punjab Assembly seeking to establish “red zones” in districts to restrict protests, calling it yet another undemocratic spectacle.

Questioning the legitimacy of Form-47 imposed rulers; he asked who they were to snatch the public’s constitutional right to protest.

He criticized provisions in the bill that would empower intelligence committees under deputy commissioners to grant or deny permission for protests, asking whether elected representatives would now be required to seek approval from bureaucrats.

He said the colonial-era bureaucratic system had been imposed on the country for seven decades, while political parties were dominated by family monopolies, resulting in the worst form of governance. Jamaat-e-Islami, he added, was striving to change the system through peaceful public resistance.

In response to a question, Rehman said that empowered local governments in major cities were the only solution to urban problems.

He criticized the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) for floating a new gimmick of handing Karachi over to the federation, saying people of Karachi were fed up with both MQM and the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP). He said that both parties had been forcibly imposed and would never come to power through genuine public mandate. He said that despite ruling Sindh for 17 years, the PPP had failed to even provide Karachi with a proper fire fighting system. He said a single family and a few feudal elites are controlling the PPP, while Bilawal Bhutto was being projected as a “wonder boy” despite widespread destruction.

He added that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was also run by a single family, with political dynasties grooming successive generations for power.

Criticizing the Punjab government, Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman said those chanting the slogan of “respect the vote” had introduced an anti-people local government system in the province. He rejected comparisons between Punjab and Sindh, calling Sindh already a “ruin,” and demanded accountability for the funds allocated to Punjab over the last 15 years. He said naming bridges and installing carts were not symbols of development, adding rulers are squeezing the public through taxes while indulging in personal publicity.

In response to another question he said that Rs2.2 trillion had been paid to Independent Power Producers (IPPs) in one year, adding the IPP mafia existed across all political parties.

He said wheat was purchased from farmers at Rs 2,000 per maund in Punjab, while flour was now being sold at Rs 6,000, asking the chief minister why 120 million people were being exploited. He asserted that the ruling classes of Punjab and Sindh were alike and partners in plunder, questioning why such elements were repeatedly imposed on the public.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026