Karachi Sindh Local Government Minister, Saeed Ghani, has said the festivities of Pakistan’s Independence Day on August 14 begin in the country with the commemoration of the Minorities’ Day on August 11 every year.
The Sindh Local Government Minister, stated this while speaking at three different events held in the city to mark the Minorities Day on Sunday. Ghani on the occasion, inaugurated a solar power system, funded by the Sindh government, at Akhtar Colony, another solar power system at BMH Parsi Hospital, and phase one of the girls’ hostel at Swaminarayan Temple.
Speaking on the occasion, the Local Government Minister said that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had originally planned to inaugurate these projects but his arrival from Islamabad had been delayed due to bad weather.
He said the CM had directed the provincial authorities to attend these events to ensure the members of the religious minorities had the fullest support of the Sindh government and PPP.
Ghani that religion was a personal matter of every person as the state had nothing to do with religion.
He said that global disputes based on religion would come to an end and peace would be restored in the country the moment everybody understood this matter.
He said that religious affiliation was a personal issue for every individual.
He told the audience that President Asif Ali Zardari had declared August 11 as Minorities Day in light of the historical address of Pakistan’s founder Qauid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah on this day in 1947.
He recalled that Quaid-e-Azam’s historical address on August 11 had been unequivocal on the issue of the rights of religious minorities. He said that Quaid-e-Azam had declared that the members of minorities would have complete freedom to practice their religion and go to their worship places as they wouldn’t face any restrictions in this regard in Pakistan.
He said the vicious elements that had been involved in the occasional incidents of targeting minorities in the country were neither bona fide Pakistanis nor real Muslims.
Ghani informed the audience that the teachings of Islam didn’t stand for discrimination based on religion. He said that Islam stood for the promotion of peace, harmony, and fraternal feelings.
He mentioned that the teachings of the Last Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) stood for treating every person fairly regardless of his or her religious affiliation.
He assured the audience that the government had been doing its best to overcome hatred spread in the country based on religion. He said that peace and love should be promoted to counter the sentiments of hatred for peace and prosperity in the country.
Ghani said he was proud of the fact that his electoral constituency in Karachi comprised a greater number of religious minorities as compared to other constituencies in the country.
He said the members of both Christian and Hindu communities in his constituency had always supported the Pakistan Peoples Party.
He said the PPP was the only political party in the country, which had awarded tickets to members of religious minorities to directly contest general elections to become MNAs and MPAs.
He said the PPP’s legislator Mahesh Malani was present in the audience as he had become the MNA after winning the election from Tharparkar for the second time. Malani had defeated former Sindh CM Arbab Ghulam Rahim. Similarly, Hari Ram twice became an MPA after winning the general election on the PPP’s ticket. He said the PPP had awarded the ticket to Giyan Chand Essarani to directly contest the National Assembly’s election from Jamshoro.
The Local Government Minister said that all these constituencies comprised a Muslim majority population as Muslim candidates contested against the PPP’s ticket holders there. He said that humanitarian work and public service delivery were the main criteria for the PPP for awarding its tickets to contest the polls. He said that an overwhelming number of representatives of minorities had supported PPP owing to its services for these religious communities.
He said the ties between the PPP and religious minorities had begun in the era of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, later Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari had strengthened these relations. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has been furthering this cause, he added.