Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has criticised Pakistan’s government, calling it an illegitimate and defeated administration. He said the rulers lacked the authority to make independent decisions.
Addressing the Mufti Mahmood Conference at Qila Kohna Qasim Bagh in Multan, Fazlur Rehman also warned that his party would resist what he described as undemocratic measures.
He said Mufti Mahmood had spent half his life in Multan. He added that the party’s elders had never forgotten Pakistan’s founding purpose and had chosen the path of peace, politics, democracy and parliament.
JUI-F Chief Criticises Democratic Governance
Fazlur Rehman accused powerful groups of repeatedly undermining democracy and violating provincial rights. He said people across Pakistan faced poverty and inflation, which had placed severe pressure on household finances.
He also questioned why Pakistan had not achieved economic prosperity and full independence after nearly 80 years.
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The JUI-F chief said the country needed political balance and stressed that state institutions and different schools of thought all had important roles to play.
He also referred to the Council of Islamic Ideology, which brings together experts in the Constitution, law and Islamic jurisprudence.
Fazlur Rehman Questions Governor’s Rule in KP
The JUI-F leader criticised the emergency measures and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He claimed that governor’s rule had been imposed in one part of the province, while emergency measures applied in another.
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He also questioned the use of security concerns in the former tribal areas to justify emergency measures. Fazlur Rehman argued that Balochistan faced serious security problems as well.
He asked why governor’s rule had not been imposed in Balochistan and suggested that the provincial government’s political leadership might explain the difference.
Furthermore, he alleged that the federal government had used emergency measures to gain control over mineral resources that fall within provincial jurisdiction.
Criticism of the Pakistan Peoples Party
Fazlur Rehman also criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which presents itself as a democratic political force.
He referred to the events surrounding East Pakistan and alleged that the country’s majority population at the time had not received proper political recognition.
He also argued that the PPP had supported governor’s rule in different provinces in the past. He specifically referred to President Asif Ali Zardari’s role in signing such measures.
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These remarks formed part of his broader criticism of what he described as repeated violations of democratic principles and provincial autonomy.
JUI-F Announces Sargodha Gathering
Fazlur Rehman announced that his party would hold a large public gathering in Sargodha on November 26.
Referring to a conversation with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, he said he had asked whether the government would use force to stop a long march. He also questioned whether the authorities would allow casualties among 200 participants to prevent the march.
According to Fazlur Rehman, the government had not waited even two hours to hold talks with him.
He warned that JUI-F would firmly oppose measures that it considers undemocratic.
Fazlur Rehman Highlights Economic Hardship
The JUI-F chief also compared the currencies of Afghanistan and Pakistan. He claimed that, despite decades of war, one US dollar was worth about 70 Afghan afghanis, while the dollar traded at around 270 Pakistani rupees.
These figures were part of his speech and were not independently verified for this report.
Fazlur Rehman said poverty and hunger had pushed some people towards suicide. He contrasted their hardship with what he described as the luxurious lifestyles of the ruling elite.
