LAHORE – A two-member bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered PirAfzal Qadri to submit a detailed apology for the remarks made by him duringa protest against the Supreme Court’s acquittal of Asia Bibi last year.
The cleric, who bid farewell to the party a few days ago, was booked undersedition and terrorism charges in Gujrat and taken into protective custodyduring a crackdown in November 2018.
During the hearing of a bail plea filed by Qadri and TLP chief KhadimHussain Rizvi today (Tuesday), Justice Qasim Ali Khan directed Qadri’scounsel, Hafeezur Rehman Chaudhry, to submit the attested apology letter.
On the onset of the hearing, the court dismissed the counsel’s plea not tohighlight the apology letter read out by Qadri on camera and insteaddirected him to read it out in the court.
“He [Qadri] should have thought about it when he was using the mic,”Justice Khan remarked.
After Chaudhry read out the apology, the court directed him to define theharsh words used in the apology letter following which the counsel saidthat according to the record, Qadri had said that the three judges [whoexonerated Aasia Bibi of blasphemy charges] were liable to be killed; thatPrime Minister Imran Khan is a Zionist agent and that the Chief of ArmyStaff Gen Javed Qamar Bajwa’s orders should be defied.
Justice Khan remarked that the comments were an incitement to violence.
The Qadri’s counsel reiterated that Qadri had apologised in his letter, butJustice Asjad Javed Ghural pointed out that he had declared that the judgesof the higher judiciary deserve to be killed.
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“Pir Afzal Qadri should have sought apology over the labels uttered againstjudges and generals,” observed Justice Khan.
The court directed the counsel to contact his client telephonically for amore detailed apology. The counsel complied with the instructions andinformed the court that Qadri will file a more detailed apology letter onWednesday.
Qadri Apologizes for Remarks
The detained leader of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Pir Muhammad AfzalQadri had tendered an apology to the Chief of Army Staff, General QamarJaved Bajwa for his earlier statements.
In a video message released a few weeks ago, Qadri also apologized togovernment representatives and judiciary for his remarks made in the ‘rushof emotions’ in the aftermath of Supreme Court’s decision regarding theacquittal of Christian woman, Aasia Bibi.
