Thousands of Muslims gathered at Delhi’s Jama Masjid after Friday’s prayers to protest against the former chairman of Shia Waqf Board, Waseem Rizvi, who has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking the removal of 26 verses from the Holy Quran.
The protest called and led by Shia Scholar and General Secretary of Majlis-e-Ulama-e-Hind, Maulana Kalbe Jawad and Supreme Court Lawyer Mehmood Pracha was joined by prominent Ulama of both Sunni and Shia sects.
Protestors denounced Rizvi as the enemy of Islam and raised slogans in defence of the Quran.
Advocate Mehmood Pracha said, “People like Waseem Rizvi are not only a threat to the Muslim community but Indian society, with this protest we urge the Supreme Court to discard his petition that seeks target on sacred religious texts of our religion, we demand an action against him.”
He said Rizvi should be awarded serious punishment for his blasphemous act so that it becomes an example for others. “We have faith in our Constitution and Supreme Judiciary, I am sure Court will do justice to the rights entitled to Muslims in the Constitution, he said.
Also read: Waseem Rizvi’s Family Disown Him, Say He Has Nothing To Do With Islam
Claiming that Rizvi is working on the lines of the establishment he said, “He doesn’t belong to us. Had he been one among us, he would have never given an opportunity to the Sangh Parivar and its allies. Through his actions, he wants to appease the establishment to get his ranks higher and give them (Sangh) ways to target Muslims.”
Maulana Kalbe Jawad, in his address, said, “Rizvi deliberately did this to get highlighted and famous. The Quran is bestowed upon us through our messengers and even a single word cannot be altered within it. He or anyone cannot disrespect any religious book and we want strict actions against him.”
He also urged both the sects to unite against forces like Waseem Rizvi and said, “It is time to unite as an opportunity has fallen from above for us to establish ourselves as one.”
Muslim Ulama in a joint statement denounced Waseem Rizvi and expelled him from Islam. They also said that Rizvi’s attempt to malign Islam went in vain instead it united people of both factions (Shias and Sunnis).
In his sermon before the Friday prayers, Imam Ahmed Bukhari also urged people to maintain their trust in the Indian Judiciary and asked people to unite for one cause. He said, “Such kind of people should be asked to revert first, but if they don’t then their boycott is necessary. They only intend to disturb the communal harmony of the society for their vested interests.”
The protest, which started from Jama Masjid was supposed to march towards the Supreme Court but remained limited to the premises of the Masjid.
Also read: Waseem Rizvi’s Lies And The Infallibility Of The Quran
