MARDAN -  Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman on Friday demanded referendum in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

“The government should give right to the people of FATA to decide their future,” he added. He expressed these views while addressing to a public meeting at Railway Ground arranged in connection with Mufti Mahmood Conference.

A large number of workers of JUI-F from Mardan district attended the meeting. Federal Minister for Housing, Akram Khan Durani, General Secretary and Deputy Chairman Senate, Senator Abdul Ghafoor Haidri, Provincial Information Secretary, Jalil Jan, District Ameer, Maulana Mohammad Qasim and other also addressed the conference.

Fazl said that late Mufti Mahmood gave awareness to the masses of the country and also brought changes in the country’s politics.  He added that Mufti Mahmood had made great efforts in making the 1973 constitution and included section about “Khatme Nabuat” and banning Ahmadia’s.

Fazl said that at that time some forces did not want Mufti Mahmood’s government and they started hypocrisy against the Baluchistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government and after the passage of nine months, they ended both the government.

The JUI-F chief added that Mufti Mahmood supported former dictator late Zia-ul-Haq due to the situation of the country and Zia-ul-Haq told Mufti Mahoomd that he will restored democracy in the country but later Zia-ul-Haq did not fulfil his commitment after which Mufti Mahood started opposing Zia-ul-Haq.

“We passed a bill in the provincial assembly in the name of Hasba Bill to implement the Islamic laws in the province, however former dictator Musharraf challenged this bill in the Supreme Court and the court declared this bill against the constitution”, he added.

He added that the law and order situation of the province were better in the MMA government and all the roads were opened for the masses and there was no check points on roads but now in the current government, the roads were blocked for the masses and there are check points on different roads.

Maulana Fazl said that Sheikh-ul-Hind put the base of Jamiyat in 1919 and Jamiat has completed its 100 years.

He added, “Next year we will celebrate it golden jubilee.”