In the wake of the governmentâs recent ban on the three reincarnated jihadi and sectarian outfits, another group, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) â the rechristened version of Lashkar-e-Taiba first banned in January 2002 â has decided to play down its presence even in cyberspace. A recent visit to the website of JuD threw up this message: âThe page you are looking for might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable.â Sources say the group may have been asked to go offline or might have decided to do so to avoid the glare of publicity on its activities in the wake of the new ban and the official crackdown on three other groups. âThe idea is to cool down the jihadi rhetoric and could be a result of some deal between the groupâs leadership and the government,â an official source in the interior ministry in Islamabad told TFT. Other sources talk more confidently of a deal and at least one told TFT that âit was after the group agreed to become low profile that the government chose not to ban it and just keep it on its watch listâ.
| Markazdawa.com is currently parked. They'll be happy to sell you all the things (Phentermine, Viagra, degrees from prestigious unacreditted universities, on-line casinos, home equity loans, etc.) people send you spam about. Spam and jihad — they go together, don't they? |
The three groups the government banned November 15 had re-launched themselves under new names. The action, say most observers, came as a response to US ambassador Nancy Powellâs blunt statement in Karachi criticising the Musharraf government for allowing the banned outfits to reappear under new names. âThese groups pose a serious threat to Pakistan, to the region and to the United States,â she had said in her statement. Sources told TFT the Americans had handed over to Islamabad some evidence on the two banned groupsâ â Khuddam-ul-Islam and Millat-e-Islamia â involvement in jihad again. The government was also told activists of the two groups were going around collecting zakat and arranging for collecting fitrana money on the Eid day. Interestingly, similar evidence against JuD activities was also available but the government chose to simply put it on the watch list rather than banning it. The JuD activists still have their camps open for collecting fitrana.
| Guess which group's on the "approved" list? Jaish has been involved in bumping people off inside Pakland. Hafiz has kept Lashkar e-Taiba out of that mess, and stuck with killing and maiming people in Kashmir. |
But the most intriguing element pertains to Masood Azhar of Jaish. After the recent ban, the law enforcement agencies are reportedly raiding various places to get him. Observers find it incredible since he was supposed to be under house confinement after the Lahore High Court ordered the government to put him under house arrest. An Urdu newspaper reported on Oct 27 that Azhar spoke at a Lashkar rally in Pattoki (central Punjab) and blasted those who talk of concepts of âjihad-e-akbarâ and âjihad-e-asgharâ. He said that jihad only meant qitaal.
| That'd be Urdu for "death and destruction," I'd guess... |
It is a mystery how he managed to be in Pattoki if he were under house arrest. âThere is also no indication that the government has taken any action against any police official for allowing Azhar to escape,â says an analyst. On the issue of soliciting donations for the jihad, officials say groups are prohibited from soliciting donations for jihad. However, some say the order is vague and it is not clear whether it also covers collecting zakat and other religious funds.
| You don't suppose it's intentionally vague, do you? |
Media reports published early this year suggested that al-Dawa had raised funds worth 710 million rupees by collecting 1.2 million hides of animals sacrificed on Eid across the country. Sources said 40 per cent of the total hides of the animals sacrificed on Eid had gone to the collection centres of al-Dawa.
Meanwhile, after the ban on Tehrik-e-Islami Pakistan, one of the components of the six-party religious alliance, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, it is unclear what the composition of the MMA would now be. For now the banned Tehrik remains part of the MMA and could likely change its name again to fulfil the legal technicalities. âIt is just ridiculous,â Fazlur Rehman says, âthe government banned a certain group (Sipah-e-Sahaba), then allowed its leader (late Azam Tariq) to contest general elections, got him elected, used him for the election of pro-Musharraf prime minister and then again put a ban on the same group... It is purely a game played by (intelligence) agencies. They make and break sectarian outfits.â |