LAHORE: Catholic Archbishop Lawrence Saldhana in a faxed message to Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Saturday expressed concern on the prevailing religious tension in Sangla Hill. Saldhanaâs letter stated that some religious circles were fanning hatred among the area people after the November 11 and 12 incidents in which an unruly Muslim mob vandalised churches and Christian property. The archbishopâs letter expressed concern at recent press statements by the Majlis-e-Khatam-e-Nabuvat and Madrassa Naeemia, Lahore, which gave the impression that the destruction of churches and Christian property was a concocted story. The letter added that judicial inquiry into the incident had yet to complete but these Muslim organisations were endorsing the accusation of desecration of Holy Quran by Yousaf Masih. Saldhana urged the government to properly investigate the incident and arrest the culprits immediately. âThe miscreants are using the gap to fan religious hatred. The judicial inquiry report should be made public soon,â the message stated. On the other hand, the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), a missionary organisation monitoring the situation in Sangla Hill, said that Islamic groups gathered about 3,000 Muslims for Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid Rizvia, Main Market, Sangla Hill, on December 2. The gathering was addressed by Pir Muhammad Afzal Qadiri, central ameer Alam-e-Tanzeem Alah-e-Sunnat, Shahibzada Muhammad Zia, central nazim-e-ala Alah-e-Sunnat, MNA Shahibzada Haji Fazal Kareem and Hafizabad District Administrator Muhammad Yousaf Qadiri.
The NCJP said that the religious leaders demanded the unconditional release of 88 Muslims detained for their alleged involvement in the November 12 incident and a public execution for alleged desecrator Yousaf Masih. In another development, Sessions Judge Sheikh Muhammad Yousaf has completed the judicial inquiry of the incident and will submit his report to the Punjab Home Department soon.