A number of pilgrims who were placed in isolation in Sukkur after their return from Iran reportedly broke out of the quarantine centre, to protest lack of adequate facilities. The law enforcement agencies managed to stop them from escaping, but the incident created chaos outside the quarantine centre.
A group led by a local Shia cleric that had come from Karachi allegedly instigated the pilgrims to escape. The said cleric also threatened to hold a mass protest against the government over non-provision of facilities inside the centre.
Prominent Shia cleric Ameen Shahidi has condemned the incident, terming it an un-Islamic act. Talking to Naya Daur, he disowned the individuals who provoked the pilgrims to escape the quarantine centre.
He added that the pilgrims would put their lives and those of others at risk if they come out of the isolation facility without completion of their quarantine term.
He said that he condemned the pilgrims' attempt to break out of the quarantine centre, but added that the pilgrims were being kept in inhumane conditions in the quarantine centre. "It is the government's mismanagement that led to anger among the pilgrims", he said. "However, no individual or group should be allowed to use the situation for its vested agenda."
He added that anyone who threatens to hold a public protest does not speak for the Shia community because the community has been cooperating with the government to contain the spread of coronavirus in the country.
A group led by a local Shia cleric that had come from Karachi allegedly instigated the pilgrims to escape. The said cleric also threatened to hold a mass protest against the government over non-provision of facilities inside the centre.
Prominent Shia cleric Ameen Shahidi has condemned the incident, terming it an un-Islamic act. Talking to Naya Daur, he disowned the individuals who provoked the pilgrims to escape the quarantine centre.
He added that the pilgrims would put their lives and those of others at risk if they come out of the isolation facility without completion of their quarantine term.
He said that he condemned the pilgrims' attempt to break out of the quarantine centre, but added that the pilgrims were being kept in inhumane conditions in the quarantine centre. "It is the government's mismanagement that led to anger among the pilgrims", he said. "However, no individual or group should be allowed to use the situation for its vested agenda."
He added that anyone who threatens to hold a public protest does not speak for the Shia community because the community has been cooperating with the government to contain the spread of coronavirus in the country.