Cleric calls on politicians to 'exercise restraint' in comments

ISLAMABAD: Prominent scholar and Wifaq ul-Madaris al-Arabia president Mufti Taqi Usmani Monday said it was shocking to even imagine how the Islamic rules and values were "being violated" and called on politicians to “exercise restraint” in their comments during public meetings.

“Allah commands in Surah Al-Hujurat to not make fun of each other. Do not gossip about each other. Do not harbour doubts about others. Do not look for faults in others. Do not call each other by [offensive] nicknames,” he tweeted, referring to the Quran.

سیاسی اختلافات میں جس بری طرح اسلامی احکام واقدار پامال ہورہی ہیں انکا تصور کرکے ڈر لگتا ہے اللہ تعالی اسکے وبال سے بچائےقرآن کریم سورہحجرات میں فرماتاہے کہ ایک دوسرے کا مذاق نہ اڑاو غیبت نہ کرو بدگمانی نہ کرو کسی دوسرے کی ٹوہ میں نہ رہو اور کسی کانام بگاڑ کر نہ بلاؤ

— Muhammad Taqi Usmani (@muftitaqiusmani) March 14, 2022

“Whether a disagreement is political or ideological, turning it into an enmity by killing and abusing each other is fatal for the society,” he added.

“Criticism could be done through arguments and not the employment of vulgar language,” he said.

Moses and his younger brother Harun "were also commanded by Allah to speak softly to Pharaoh", he said.

“For Allah’s sake! Think where we are headed,” he lamented. “May Allah protect all of us from this.”

As a judge on the Shariat appellate bench of Supreme Court from 1982 to 2002, Usmani specialised in Islamic jurisprudence and financial matters.