Pakistan News And Discussion-9

[Guest]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Nuggets from the Urdu press </b>
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<b>Was Saddam a communist?</b>
Columnist Tanveer Qaisar Shahid wrote in Daily Pakistan that Saddam Hussain was a Sunni but he ruled Iraq as a secular person whose life had no hint of religion. He joined the Baath party, which was allergic to religion. The founder of the Baath party was Micheal Aflick, who was a Christian Arab and a communist. In 1980 Saddam Hussain told author John C Koli that religion divides people. The Baath party spread pan-Arabism, communism and secularism. Saddam Hussain didn’t allow a kalima on the national flag for many years and Iraq was not called the Islamic Republic of Iraq.


<b>Thank you Pervez Elahi!</b>
In daily Jang, famous columnist Nazir Naji wrote that Chaudhry Pervez Elahi has the distinction of creating the first journalist colony in Pakistan. Pervez Elahi didn’t involve himself in the distribution of plots to journalists. The trade unions of journalists are divided into many groups. Out of many possible options, he allowed the Lahore Press Club to distribute the plots. The Press Club was allowed to form its own criteria for the distribution of plots. We are thankful to Pervez Elahi for serving our journalist brothers. The services of Taimoor Azmat, ex DGPR Shoaib bin Aziz and media consultant Iqbal Chaudhry is also appreciated for making this scheme possible.

<b>Misbah stopped from going to madrassa</b>
As reported in daily Nawa-i-Waqt, British born Pakistani girl Misbah Irum was stopped by her father Sajjad Rana from going to a madrassa mosque in Islamabad. According to The Guardian, Misbah Irum was getting religious education from Lal Masjid. Sajjad Rana said he was afraid that Misbah was being influenced by a fanatic religious scholar.

<b>Hindu bathing</b>
According to Daily Pakistan, thousands of Hindus are converging in Allahabad for the sacred Kumbh Mela which is celebrated every 12 years. This mela is celebrated on the spot where the three rivers, the Jamna, the Sarasvati and the Ganga meet. The Hindus believe that bathing in this water cleans them of all sins. According to Hindus, when gods and rakshas fought over the water stored in a sacred bowl, some of this water dripped on the earth near Allahabad. The organiser of this mela, Pergaim Ram Mishra, said that it is wrong that the water is not fit for bathing as we have closed all polluted water canals leading to these rivers.

<b>Drunken pilots arrested</b>
According to daily Nawa-i-Waqt, Pakistan International Airline pilots Captain Amir and Captain Gabool were arrested for drinking at Toronto. The flight started from Lahore and reached Toronto when the passengers started to complain about the drunken state of the two pilots. According to PIA both the pilots are suspended.  <!--emo&--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->

<b>Basant is an ancient festival</b>
In daily Jang, columnist Chaudhry Fawad Hussain related that SM Latif (in his book that appeared in 1982) wrote that the festival of Basant and mela charaghan (urs of Shah Hussain) were celebrated in Lahore. Some sixty years ago a Dr Burner visited Punjab and saw the celebration of Basant during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Ranjit Singh invited Dr Burner and they toured Lahore together on an elephant. Ranjit Singh’s army was wearing yellow clothes and this festival was held to celebrate the arrival of spring.

<b>Basant is a blessing for Lahore</b>
In daily Jang, columnist Chaudhry Fawad Hussain wrote that during the 90’s Basant became a symbol of hospitality, culture and liveliness of Lahore. In February, people would travel from across the world to celebrate Basant in Lahore. This festival became a blessing for the economy of this city. It’s unfortunate for Muslim countries where few a hardliners have the capacity to impose their views on majority. During the height of basant a religious group started opposing this festival because it is against Islam. Its impossible to understand how flying a kite offends religion.

<b>Saudi hotels serving expired meat</b>
According to daily Express, it has been discovered that Saudi restaurants are selling the meat of sacrificial animals during Eid. The government raided the hotels and recovered hundreds of kilograms of expired meat from the restaurants. The government agencies claimed they recovered the meat of sacrificial animals from different hotels in Jeddah and Riyadh.

<b>Saddam is Mujahid-i-Azam</b>
As reported in daily Express, the ameer of Ahl-e-Sunnat, Mohammad Afzal Qadri, condemned the hanging of Saddam Hussain. He said hanging him and filming his death is inhuman and shows the defeat of America. He said Saddam Hussain showed mujahidana character, and <b>he called Saddam, ‘Mujahid-i-Azam of this century’</b>. He said Saddam was not a prophet or an angel and he made mistakes but in Islam misery and humbleness depend on the death of a person and Saddam had an ideal and exemplary death.

<b>Don’t support Saddam</b>
As reported in daily Express, the highly regarded shia religious madrassa Jamiat ul Muntazar expressed unhappiness over the support of Saddam Hussain by the ulema and religious parties. Spokesman Nusrat Ali Shahani said Saddam Hussain killed thousand of Sunnis, Shias and Shia ulema including the famous alam e-din Shiekh Abdul Azim Albadri, Ayatullah Syed Mohammad Baqir al Sadr, and Ayatullah Mohsin Alhakim and his family members. According to the Jamia spokesman, Saddam Hussain’s Baath party propagated communism. He attacked Kuwait and created an excuse for American forces to occupy the Harmain Sharifain and Kuwait. He said that the supporters of Saddam Hussain are displaying the wrong emotions and the West uses such misplaced reactions as Islamic opinion to malign Islam. . <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->