Pakistan Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmad/Image from Dawn
New Delhi: After ordering to demolish an illegally constructed mosque in Karachi, Pakistan Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmad and Sindh province Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has been threatened with dire consequences if the court order is implemented.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Secretary-General Rashid Mahmood Soomro, has said that the party won't allow implementation of the court's order, reports Friday Times.
The Pakistan Supreme Court had ruled that a mosque, shrine and cemetery built near Tariq Road in Karachi were encroaching on public parkland, and ordered on Tuesday that the constructions be brought down.
Soomro posted a video on Twitter, which went viral by late Wednesday, daring authorities to raze the mosque.
"Mr Chief Justice the mosques are not orphans... Mr Chief Minister the mosques are not orphans... If you have the courage, then show it and try bulldozing the mosque," Soomro goaded, as per the report.
He warned, "We will stop you on the way [to the mosque]... If mosques are demolished, your offices will also be demolished."
Khawaja Shams, the counsel for the mosque's administration, argued that the land was obtained legally through auction from the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC).
The District Municipal Corporation (DMC) maintained that the land was still zoned for public amenities. Gulzar Ahmad had chastised the district administration for unfettered developments across the city.
"What have you done with this city," Ahmad questioned, adding: "The city has been built in a way that it now needs to be rebuilt from scratch, like Poland, Germany and France were," as per the report.