Imran calls for outlawing blasphemy on lines of Holocaust

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday urged the Western countries to outlaw rising instances of blasphemy, just as some countries restrict anti-Semitic speech or Holocaust denial.

In a series of tweets, the prime minister condemned “extreme right politicians” in the West who “deliberately indulge” in willful and intentional provocations under the “guise of freedom of speech”.

Let me make clear to people here & abroad: Our govt only took action against TLP under our anti-terrorist law when they challenged the writ of the state and used street violence & attacking the public & law enforcers. No one can be above the law and the Constitution.

— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) April 17, 2021

Imran further observed that “Muslims have the greatest love and respect” for Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who “lives in our hearts”. “We cannot tolerate any such disrespect and abuse.”

“We demand an apology from these extremists.”, he said, adding that these people “clearly lack moral sense and courage to apologise” to the 1.3 billion Muslims living across the globe “for causing this hurt”.

His tweet comes days after the federal cabinet approved a summary from the Ministry of Interior proposing a ban on the hardline Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) under the provision of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

TLP BANNED AS NO ONE CAN BE ABOVE LAW:

The premier made it clear that the government took action against TLP under the anti-terrorism law when it challenged the writ of the state and used street violence, as no one can be above the law and the country’s constitution.

“Let me make [it] clear to people here and abroad [that] our government only took action against TLP under our anti-terrorist law when they challenged the writ of the state, used street violence and attacked the public and law enforcers. No one can be above the law and the Constitution,” the premier said in his tweets.

On Monday last, in nationwide protests that paralysed the country for days, thousands of TLP workers agitated against the arrest of their chief ahead of planned countrywide rallies to denounce the publication of caricatures in France. The protests, which choked entry and exit points to major cities, ended in hundreds of arrests, injuries and the deaths of TLP workers as well as police officials.

In October last year, protests had broken out in several Muslim countries over France’s response to a deadly attack on a teacher who showed caricatures during a civics lesson. During similar protests in Pakistan, the government had then negotiated with the TLP and said it would make a move in parliament to fulfill their key demand: the expulsion of the French ambassador. A deadline to make that parliamentary move expires on April 20.

Following the quelling of the TLP protests by law enforcement agencies over the better part of the week, the government ban will move to the Supreme Court to ascertain its legality.