Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday confirmed the provincial government has handed control of madrassas affiliated with the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) to religious scholar Mufti Muneebur Rahman.
The federal government imposed a ban on the TLP on Oct. 24 on the request of the Punjab government over its violent protests, which resulted in the death of a police station house officer (SHO) earlier this month. Addressing a meeting of the Ittehad-e-Bain-ul-Muslimeen in Lahore, Nawaz said the purpose of madrassas and mosques was to impart religious knowledge. Referring to the TLP’s violent protests, she said images from it were beyond imagination.
“Vehicles assigned for cleaning were set ablaze. Roads were blocked, causing difficulties for people,” she said, adding the actions of the now-banned TLP had disgraced religious leaders and parties across the country. Noting the TLP had planned to protest in Islamabad, she said it was the government’s responsibility to protect those living in the country from unrest.
“Embassies around the world are respected and given protection,” she explained, questioning the need for the protest when Hamas and Israel had agreed to a peace deal. Rather than celebrating the ceasefire, she said, workers of the TLP had taken to the streets and made unnecessary demands of the government.
“How was it solidarity with Palestine when calls were made to attack Islamabad after the [Gaza peace] agreement?” she asked and called on other religious parties to “distance themselves” from the group and work to improve society.
Likening the TLP’s violence to the May 9, 2023 riots, she claimed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s “downfall” had begun when it took up arms. “If the PTI had continued its political struggle, no one would have objected,” she maintained, asserting that the PMLN had never taken up arms or committed violence during its political struggle.
Questioning the TLP’s claims of a peaceful struggle when its workers had brought weapons, she said authorities had also recovered large caches of arms and ammunition during their raids on TLP offices.
Earlier, the Punjab government had announced it was granting administrative control of 300 mosques and 125 madrassas run by the TLP in the province to the Auqaf Department. The chief minister also announced the release of TLP prisoners, who were found innocent during the investigations.