‘Beyond shameless’: Slogan chanting at Masjid-e-Nabwi deplored

Videos shared on social media showed protestors shouting insulting comments against Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb and JWP chief Shahzain Bugti

The political and religious leadership of the country along with others on Friday strongly condemned the chanting of ‘political slogans’ at Masjid-e-Nabwi (PBUH) in Madina.

Videos shared on social media showed protestors shouting insulting comments against Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb and Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) chief Shahzain Bugti. Politicians, religious leaders and others took to social media to express their outrage.

The information minister condemned the desecration of the holy site and shared a verse from the Holy Quran which tells the believers not to speak loudly than the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail called the incident a new low for politics in Pakistan saying the event was beneath contempt and beyond shameless.

Renowned religious scholar Maulana Tariq Jamil said the incident was not right in the eyes of Islam and deserved condemnation.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman said that raising the volume of one’s voice in the mosque went against Islamic etiquette. He said that the event was insulting to the holy site, adding that those who could not respect the sanctity of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) house could not claim to be followers of his teachings.

PML-N lawmaker Hina Parvez Butt called on the Saudi authorities to immediately arrest those responsible for the incident and punish them so these incidents would not happen again.

Following the development, Saudi Arabian authorities arrested some Pakistani nationals, allegedly belonging to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, involved in the incident.

Media reports citing the director of information at the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Islamabad stated that some Pakistanis were arrested for violating the sanctity of the Masjid-e-Nabwi and a probe had been launched into the matter. The official added that the individuals were detained after they violated the rules of the mosque.

In another development, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said on Friday that the government would request Saudi Arabia to take befitting action against individuals who used indecent language in the premises of Masjid-e-Nabwi (PBUH).

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Friday, the interior minister said the act was condemnable and had hurt the entire Muslim Ummah. The interior minister added that Pakistan would also request the Saudi government to provide identification of the culprits involved for action against them.

He called for the individuals to be deported as they must not be allowed to stay in the holy land any more.