Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani on Monday said security for slain seminary head, Maulana Dr Adil Khan, had been discussed multiple times but the provincial government was unable to provide the same because its hands were tied by a 2018 Supreme Court order by former chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar.
Ghani’s statement comes two days after Maulana Dr Adil, head of a prominent Karachi seminary, Jamia Farooqia, was shot dead along with his driver in a suspected targeted attack. Investigators have launched a probe to ascertain the identity and exact motive for the killing, however, no arrests have been made so far.
Addressing a press conference in Karachi, the minister said the deceased’s son had mentioned security once during a meeting with provincial ministers and that the matter was discussed once more after a meeting at the Chief Minister’s Office.
“When he was assassinated, I checked whether he had been provided with security, and if not, the reasons behind it,” Ghani said, adding that he found that just two policemen had been deputed at the seminary in Shah Faisal Colony.
Ghani then went on to say that an order issued by former chief justice of Pakistan, Mian Saqib Nisar, had become a “problem” for the provincial government in providing adequate security to Dr Adil.
In 2018, Justice Nisar had ordered withdrawal of security from unauthorised persons across the country, following which provinces were asked by the apex court to devise a mechanism to provide security to those entitled. In response, threat assessment committees were formed in all federating units tasked with assessing and providing security to those deemed entitled.
“The formation of the threat assessment committee [following the SC order] has created a lot of hurdles for us. The government and the chief minister no longer have the power to order security for a particular person,” Ghani said during his presser.
“But the government is blamed when such incidents occur,” he added, referring to the cleric’s assassination.
Ghani said powers to deploy security resources should rest with the government so that similar incidents can be prevented in the future. “If the committee was not there, then maybe we could have given Dr Adil the security he required within an hour.”
Ghani also called for inclusion of Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid in the investigation regarding Dr Adil’s assassination because the latter had warned of terror attacks in the country just hours before the gun attack on the cleric.
At a press conference in Lahore on Saturday, Rashid had warned opposition parties of the possibility of terrorism and coronavirus spread due to their joint protest rallies under the Pakistan Democratic Movement.
“Hours after his press conference, a major terrorist incident occurred in the city,” Ghani said, adding that the railways minister should be questioned on how he knew terror incidents may occur during the opposition’s rallies.
