LAHORE: Eight anti-marathon protests under the Muttahida Majlis-e-Aamal (MMA) will be held in the provincial capital today (Friday). The protests would be aimed at convincing people to boycott the mixed marathon and join religious groups against obscenity, said a meeting on Thursday, which was presided over by Lahore MMA President Hafiz Salman Butt. The meeting said the party would also launch a campaign from January 20 against the "anti-Islamic move by the rulers". Clerics would ask people to boycott the marathon and support the MMA during Friday sermons, the meeting added.
Salman Butt said that clerics had been asked to condemn the marathon during Friday sermons and protest outside mosques, pressing the government to withdraw its decision. He said that MMA leaders had held meetings with students and delegations of traders and lawyers, seeking their cooperation in this regard. MMA leaders and workers had also been assigned duty at all the banks and other important spots, from where people would purchase tickets, he said, âWe will not force people but we will brief them about the governmentâs intention to promote obscenity under the cover of sports and funds for the October 8 earthquake victims.â |