KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Thursday that Sindh has chartered the path towards fulfillment of the mission of founding fathers of Pakistan and urged other three provinces to follow Sindh government and assembly, who passed the landmark legislation against forced conversion of non-Muslim citizens of the country.
It may be recalled that the Sindh Assembly unanimously passed into a law the Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill 2015 on Thursday in a bid to prevent and criminalise forced religious conversions and subsequent forced marriages. Under this law, anyone found involved in a forced conversion could face a minimum of five years and a maximum of life in prison along with a fine.
“Islam is world’s fastest growing religion in the history and reports and incidents of forced conversion have been granting pretexts to malign its peaceful and universal teachings,” he said, adding that the protection of non-Muslim citizens would be a tribute to the founders of the nation.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that a strong and democratic Pakistan has no room for any perpetual fear to stay among any part of its society. The law passed by the PPP-dominated Sindh Assembly would address some of the genuine grievances from non-Muslim Pakistanis reaching us through media and the masses, he added.
The PPP chairman appreciated the Sindh government, Sindh Assembly, its members and all those involved in the drafting and passage of the bill and pledged that PPP would also replicate the same legislation in other three provinces whenever comes to power there.
He further said that the passage of Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill and Sindh Minorities Rights Commission Bill was a monumental piece of legislation, undoing the negative image of our country. “Founders of Pakistan and founders of PPP had the vision of equality and we are moving towards that vision with the support of masses,” he concluded.
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