TNSM warns against further military action

SWAT - Spokesman of Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat Muhammadi (TNSM) Amir Izzat Khan Monday has said that his
organisation is not against the appointment of Qazis; rather it is not in favour of the unilateral decision of the
NWFP government.
Addressing a press conference at Amandara, Amir Izzat said if the provincial government ensured the
appointment of Qazis as per TNSM expectations, they could guarantee absolute peace in the restive Swat
valley. He said if any one took arms after the imposition of Sharia, he would be considered as a rebel and his
murder would be obligatory as per the injunction of Islam.
He said the government should first stop military operations in Dir and Buner and after that the TNSM would be
answerable to disarm the Taliban. He stressed the government to take effective and unanimous steps for
appointing Qazis and said failing to do so, the government would be sole responsible for the restoration of
peace in the area.
He maintained if TNSM chief Sufi Mohammad had no authority to appoint Qazis, why the government
representatives were rushing towards him. He said TNSM had been peacefully struggling for the imposition of
Sharia for the last twenty years and could guarantee peace only if the provincial government showed sincerity.
Online adds: Banned Tehrik-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi has claimed that Swat deal was not meant for
peace, rather it aimed at complete implementation of Sharia. It went on to state that maintaining peace would be
their responsibility only after Shariah is implemented, otherwise the government would be liable for any
eventuality.
Addressing the news conference at Amandara, Spokesman TNSM Amir Izzat Khan told the reporters that the
government could not assure peace even if all the material power gathered.
He said TNSM had warned the government about launching the operation against militants in Lower Dir and
Buner, as situation would be out of control. Peace cannot be established with force and if the government takes
any sober decision then we will also respond in similar fashion, he said.
He again rejected chances of resuming talks until the military action was stopped. There are several scholars
but Shariat-i-Muhammadi is something different.
If Qazis are appointed accordingly to the Shariah then we will tell the people that army is for our safety and
anyone who takes up arms after the implementation of Shariah then he would be declared infidel and his funeral
prayer would not be held, he said.
Answering to a question about establishment of Darul Qaza, he said during the Timergara conference that all the
decisions would be taken after further consultation and the governments unilateral act was a violation of the
peace pact.
When asked about appointment of Qazis, he said they could not pass any comment, as they knew nothing about
them. To another question, he said they did not say that Qazis would be appointed by Maulana Sufi Mohammad
and only demanded their appointment with consultation. We are not demanding any perks and privileges, he
said. We have separated ourselves from all the matters because the government has announced the
establishment of Darul Qaza on its own, he added.
Replying to another question, he said the government was powerful with all the resources at its disposal;
therefore, it should announce ceasefire and afterwards the Taliban would also stop fighting.
He said TNSM did not reject the agreement because people would think, we are struggling for ourselves.
Monitoring Desk adds: BBC has reported that like a number of other residents of Lower Dir, TNSM Chief
Maulana Sufi Mohammad has also been constrained to leave his native place and shifted to Batkhela along with
other family members at the TNSM centre, following the security forces action in the area.
Last night, mortar shells hit Sufis house, but no casualty had been reported.
TNSM spokesman Maulana Izzat Khan told the BBC that Maulana Sufi had migrated from the neighbourhood
after the decision of the 'Shoora. He further disclosed that several mortar shells fired during the security forces
action, landed at Sufi Muhammads house causing damage to the kitchen and boundary walls of the house.
Security forces action was not intentional, said Amir Izzat, as the security forces in the locality had been
attacked and Maulanas house became a target in cross fire.
Meanwhile, some reports have indicated abduction of Member Central Shoora TNSM Maulana Ghias ud Din
along with some of his companions from Maidan in Lower Dir.
According to Amir Izzat, unidentified persons had abducted Ghias ud Din. However, he did not confirm the
incident saying that local residents had reported the kidnapping.
He said Ghias had travelled to Maidan from Batkhela accompanied by Maulana Sufi in a car, from where he had
left for his village Bandai Killay. All telephone lines at Bandai Killay are silent and no one could be contacted,
he added.
Agencies add: Defunct TNSM Chief Maulana Sufi Muhammad has said that liberation of Kashmir is not Taliban
mission,we only want glory of Islam.
He said this is his first ever interview with an Indian journalist.
He said that his organisation was demanding enforcement of Shariah only because it ensures welfare of
humanity, peace and reconciliation.
'It is necessary in Pakistan because the ideology of Pakistan and its Constitution both call for it, he maintained.
When he was asked if his contention to promulgate Shariah laws in Pakistan did not look like a bid to establish
a parallel system in the country, he said it was not the least a parallel system because the Constitution of
Pakistan clearly provided for the rule of Holy Quran and Sunnah in the State and no code contrary to it was
acceptable.
'We want education for men and women which is strictly based on Islamic principles, he maintained. When
asked about the type of reforms he wanted to bring to punish the crimes, he replied, 'we are demanding the
heavenly system in which the criminals are punished according to the nature of crime. This is upto the Qazi to
apply the law on the basis of evidence.
He was questioned whether Taliban would advance towards the Indian Kashmir after maintaining peace in
Malakand and its neighbouring areas, to which he replied in distinct words that they were not fighting for land,
rather their struggle aimed at glory of Islam.
In another interview, he said that Islam was the real Constitution of Pakistan but it was not being put to practice.
'We follow the real Constitution. If there is Shariah, there is peace, otherwise not. None frames law but Allah and
legislation is 'Haram in Islam. I do not agree with democracy; I agree with Shariah only. Every act is Pakistan is
ultra-Shariah. Shariah is only talked about here; no practical step is taken, he concluded.