A religious group in Jammu and Kashmir has called for a shutdown to protest the caricatures of Prophet Muhammad by French magazine Charlie Hebdo.
While addressing a press conference here at Karwaan-e-Islami office in Shaheed Gunj, MUAS chief spokesperson and head of Ummat-e-Islami, Qazi Yasir, said the people in Europe particularly France are ‘scared because Islam is the fastest growing religion’ in the world and that is why they resort to these acts.
“Sometimes, they publish these caricatures and sometimes they ban veil so that Muslims are provoked,” he said.
Asking people to observe shutdown on January 23, he said it is ‘the matter of faith’. “We appeal trade organizations and transporters to cooperate with us,” he said.
He said the MUAS would also contact both the factions of Hurriyat and JKLF to garner support. “Though, two weeks have passed since caricatures were published but the reason we didn’t call for shutdown is because we were waiting for the call from Hurriyat factions,” he said.
Qazi Yasir, who is the son of slain cleric and pro-freedom leader, Qazi Nissar, said the amalgam’s chief Maulana Riyaz Noorabadi would lead a delegation to New Delhi in the month of February and would meet ambassadors of Islamic Countries over the issue.
He said several protests and demonstrations would be organized on Friday across the Kashmir against the caricatures.
On the occasion, he said the shutdown call is also against the Government of India’s move to grant citizenship to West Pakistan refugees. Terming the move as ‘Israeli tactic’, he said: “India wants to change the demography of Kashmir by granting citizenship to the immigrants.”
The MUAS justified the attack of French weeky by Al Qaeda linked attackers and said the attack was ‘in retaliation to the insult’.
While condemning the caricatures of Prophet (PBUH), JKLF chairman has extended support the shutdown call by MUAS.
Addressing the protesters on the occasion of Gaw Kadal massacre anniversary, Malik said: “Today the world is fast moving towards deterioration and decline as sacred people are being targeted by bunch of fools in the name of freedom of expression.”
He said that this is ‘in fact ugliest form of terrorism that is promoting hatred among the people’.
“Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is the holiest man of the universe. Our prophet is our pride and honor and no Muslim can take attack on the honor of our Prophet lightly,” he said.
Asking world to come forward to stop this nonsense of desecrating holy people, he said: “this nonsense is actually making our world much worst place to live on.”
Malik said the disgraceful acts by some rogue people can in no means put any blot on the ‘honor and dignity of our beloved Prophet (PBUH). “The dignity of the Prophet (PBUH), whose honor has been elevated by Allah himself and whose enemies have been promised divine punishment cannot be undermined by some blasphemous sketches,” he said, and asked people to observe shutdown on Friday.
