Saturday, July 05, 2008

Dr. Israr's Blasphemy

Readers of this blog will vouch for the fact that I tend to stay away from religious debate, as we seem to have different interpretations and after all, everyone is entitled to their opinions and beliefs. But this time, Dr. Israr has really crossed the line for me. His comments, aired on June 12th on a QTV program, are shockingly sacrilegious and leaves one wondering: what the ?#@$ was he thinking?! I addressed the following letter to PEMRA and sent it to the editor of DAWN. Hopefully it'll get published.

The recent deplorable comments by Israr Ahmed on QTV are a cause of shame and disgust for all Muslims. One can only judge the true intentions of a speaker by the selection of issue. By narrating a highly controversial tradition from a dubious source that contradicts the very essence of Islam - as Imam Ali (as) embodied whatever Islam is - Mr. Ahmed has shown an incredible lack of rationality and objectivity. Mr. Ahmed deliberately tried to put doubts in minds of the unwary and stoke flames of sectarianism, in pursuit of fulfilling his satanic agenda. However, the responsibility of this act does not end with Israr Ahmed. The team of QTV responsible for producing this program share equal blame for their severe lack of competence in screening this venomous content, which has the potential of causing great social strife. Subsequent apologies from the ARY Network notwithstanding, this is a case-in-point for taking measures against incompetence of a media outlet by PEMRA.

In this regards, we ask the regulatory authority to severely reprimand the administration of QTV along with imposing a hefty fine as a reminder for the channel to rectify it's conduct. We also demand the QTV administration to name-and-shame people involved in broadcasting the program in question. Furthermore, speakers/preachers such as Israr Ahmed should be barred from writing or voicing comments through the electronic media, in view of the disturbance of public order these people can and have caused. We sincerely hope that by taking such strong measures in view of the controversy created by the speaker will restore public confidence viz-a-viz the credibility of the media and governance credentials of the people in power.
The damned video in question:


8 comments:

Anonymous said...

correction.
the said program was first time on aired in 1997 and it is not recent program.

Anonymous said...

The alcohol was
permitted in Islam earlier and later declared Haram. If Hazrat Ali didn't drink, other companion used to drink before it was declared haram. Does it make other people
sinful? of course not..because when it became haram they stopped drinking it.what's the issue?

Unknown said...

@Voice
The issue is that he's narrated a highly dubious source for such an extraordinary claim when Hazrat Ali (A.S)'s purity is confirmed by several authentic hadiths and a certain ayat in the Quran. To hear this from him - an expert on Quran in his own words - is unbelievably shocking!

Anonymous said...

My question to 'voice': When was it declared haraam?

Don't you think if it was allowed before, banning it would be hypocrisy?

Give me one incident of the Prophet(S.A.W.W.) (Nauzobillah) drinking.

@Raza: I'm not going to ask you if I can post this on my blog, 'cause I already have!

Anonymous said...

there is a literal way of looking at things and there is a logical way...build your knowledge from the Holy Quran yourself...dont get influenced by anybody...

that is the best way to learn...pick up the good points from everybody...but build on it yourself...

Anonymous said...

I agree with UTP, however when we openly condemn the Danish cartoonist and Salman Rushdi for their blasphemy Israr Ahmed should also not be spared from this unforgiving act.

He should be tried and be given capital punishment.

Tazeen said...

I think he is banned from all the tv channels for life

Anonymous said...

By reading your comments on the issue and your own "thoughts" expressed within, I can safely say that none of you have attempted to investigate, and read up, for yourselves. Only a perpetual continuation of the rhetoric forwarded by each of your respective ideology/sect representatives. Most of the Shia brothers and sisters are condemning it, while the majority of Sunni brothers and sisters are dismissing it. Perhaps Muslims might want to look at things from a different perspective instead of from the eternally righteous attitude. My personal view is that it wasn't the Dr's intention to defame Hazrat Ali (raa) or anything of the sort, but to use a hadith that came to his mind at the time or which he considered convenient, in order to make his point of the gradual dissemination of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). This very hadith is present in numerous tafseers and yet the outrage. No surprise, however, as many Muslims do not read the Quran, much less any other books.

Post a Comment