Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F), addressed the general council of JUI Punjab, emphasizing the need for united opposition against election irregularities.
Islamabad: Fazlur Rehman warns of disruptions inside and outside parliament. He urged Shehbaz Sharif to join hands with the opposition to safeguard against potential challenges. He accused political parties of orchestrating election fraud rather than the establishment.
Highlighting the pervasive issue of corruption, the JUI-F chief asserted that evidence of financial coercion against their candidates exists, challenging the integrity of the electoral process.
Expressing his concerns about the state of democracy, Mr Rehman stated that the parliament has been reduced to the status of a mere exhibition institution, and democracy is gradually losing its credibility.
During the council meeting, a unanimous resolution was passed by JUI Punjab, denouncing the February 8 elections and institutional interference.
The resolution underscores JUI Punjab’s commitment to spearhead a movement against election malpractices, signaling a concerted effort to address systemic issues and uphold democratic principles.
Fazal-ur-Rehman is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F). He is also the president of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), a coalition of political parties which ousted then prime minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence motion in 2022. He was a member of the National Assembly between 1988 and 2018, and the Leader of the Opposition from 2004 to 2007. He is a supporter of the Taliban government in Afghanistan and has demanded for its international recognition. In the 1980s, he was part of the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD), which was formed to end the military regime of General Zia-ul-Haq.
Fazal-ur-Rehman is nicknamed as “Maulana Diesel” in Pakistan’s political landscape.
Rehman is a pro-Taliban politician, known for his close ties to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. He has attempted to re-brand himself as a moderate without connections to religious extremists and hardliners. In the past, he has called for imposition of Sharia in Pakistan. Being a follower of Mahmud Hasan Deobandi who campaigned for liberation against the British Raj but later restricted his members from armed struggle after establishing Political party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Rehman opposed armed struggle to impose shariah laws as it leads to extremism in society. When in power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from 2004 to 2007, his party passed the ‘Hasba Bill’ which was later declared illegal and unconstitutional. Through this bill, he believed that he would be following in his father Mufti Mahmud‘s footsteps, as he tried to implement ‘Nizam-e-Mustafa’, which his father struggled for throughout his political life. However, it was declared unconstitutional by Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Chaudhry.
After defeat in the 2018 Pakistani general election, Rehman was ejected from the National Assembly and failed to win major political support in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, bagging only 10 of the 99 seats in his home turf. Alleging election fraud, 11 opposition political parties formed the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) appointing Rehman as the president of this movement.
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