A proliferation of madreassasAccording to Abdul Majeed Salik in Jang, there were 11,221 religious seminaries (madrassas) in Pakistan in the year 2005. This number has grown from 6,761 in 2000. This meant that in these years – that also saw the terrorist attack of 9/11 – the seminaries have almost doubled in Pakistan. There are 448 madrassas for women too. The largest number of madrassas, 8,191, belonged to Wifaqul Madaris Arabiya, 1,952 to Tanzimul Madaris and 381 to Wifaqul Madaris Shia. The majority of the seminaries are Deobandi. For instance, in the Punjab, 444,156 pupils are Deobandi as opposed to 199,973 Barelvi, 34,253 Ahle Hadith and 7,333 Shia. The largest number of madrassas are not in Lahore but first in Bahawalpur, then in Lahore and Faisalabad.
Qadiani leader challenged in Tando Adam
According to the Nawa-e-Waqt, Khatm-e-Nabuwwat leader Allama Ahmad Mian Hammadi, with his followers, registered an FIR of blasphemy against the London-based Qadiani leader Masroor Ahmad. Other Qadianis who will now catch the mischief of thana are four Qadianis who published and printed a journal titled Misbah in which an offending article first appeared.
Chinese were always sleepy!
Sarerahe wrote in the Nawa-e-Waqt that the Chinese nation, whose first letter was chay, was always known to be sleepy (giran-khwaab) because of opium-eating. They slept so much that their eyes remained narrow and seemed about to close. God then took pity and gave them the plant called cha-ay (tea). After drinking tea the Chinese woke up but their eyes could not fully open after centuries of sleepiness.
RAW in Balochistan
Quoted in the Nawa-e-Waqt, General (Retd) Zaheerul Islam Abbasi – who tried to stage a coup in Pakistan in 1995 after being thrashed by Indians during his tenure as an attaché in Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi – said in Lahore that Balochistan was being undermined by India through RAW which was leading the operations from inside Afghanistan. He said India was Pakistan’s eternal enemy and wanted to take Kashmir and Northern Areas and undo Pakistan. He said his party Azmat Islam Tehreek would bring Khilafat Rashida while all other religious parties had failed.
Gujranwala religious city
According to the Nawa-e-Waqt all the religious organisations including MMA and Shabab Milli in Gujranwala gave an ultimatum to the administration that if they did not close the Al Marjan entertainment centre in the city they would pull it down after doing gherao. They said that Gujranwala was a religious city and fahashi (entertainment) could not be tolerated there.
The question Abraham asked Ismail
According to Jang, the Quran narrates that God appeared to Abraham in his dream and asked for the sacrifice of his son, Ismail. Abraham, upon waking up, asked Ismail what he thought of the dream. Ismail said that he will find him steadfast and patient. After this question was Ismail was prepared by his father for sacrifice.
Arab princes get more hunting grounds
According to the Nawa-e-Waqt prime minister Shaukat Aziz had given orders to give extraterritorial rights to the Arab princes in additional hunting grounds in Pakistan.
| Getting ready for elk season? |
| Cuz you can never have too many palaces |
Non-chewing Muslims on Eid
Doctors gave warning in Khabrain and Nawa-e-Waqt that Muslims should not eat too much meat during Eid al Azha. It was observed that Muslims did a lot of overeating on Eid and then fell victim to diseases. The doctors also noted that during Eid, Muslims also gave up chewing the food properly. This was done to eat large quantities quickly. Some doctors especially published warnings that chewing should not be given up.
The glutton sheep of Sargodha
According to the daily Express, a male sheep of the inner city of Sargodha – already declared Rustam-e-Punjab twice – had attained the weight of 90 kilos and was to be sacrificed finally on 2006 Eid. The champion drank a litre of milk, ate five boiled desi eggs, one pao of apple jam, one kilo grain and ten kilos of green every day. Its owner rubbed purified butter into its hide and made it run daily to prevent it from developing heart trouble. When in anger, it wounded people. So far three had to see the doctor. The envied owner said he would be killing the Rustam-e-Punjab with a heavy heart.
Secret of incomplete Bismillah
Writing in the daily Pakistan, Mian Muhammad Jamil stated that during animal sacrifices Muslims must not say the complete Bismillah ar Rehman Nir Raheem because the Prophet (pbuh) never said it during the ritual. Therefore, saying just Bismillahu Akbar was compulsory. There was a great secret hidden in this abbreviation.
Hide and seek over hides
Reported by Jang in Karachi, there were incidents of hide collectors being assaulted by opposition goons who beat up the collectors and made away with the hides. In Lahore in Raiwind the citizens were threatened with disease and the locality was littered with the stinking entrails left behind by the wayside. The clerics announced on the loudspeakers that the ritual begun by Prophet Abraham was going to uplift the Muslims. The inhabitants of Raiwind were overpowered by the stink of the animal leftovers which the city was unable to dispose of.
‘Bacchra’ escapes from under knife
As reported in Jang, in a Khanewal locality, Sheikh Muhammad Bashir had fattened his bacchra (calf of a cow) to momentous dimensions but when he laid it down to cut its throat the bacchra got up and ran into the street. Four men went after it but it butted them with great force and wounded them. Finally the bacchra was caught after six hours and held down by 50 people for the slaughter.