Practising Religion in Public Place, Is It Justified?

We talk about freedom of expression and freedom to practice religion, everyone uses this freedom to justify his own provocation, in fact taking the liberty to freedom of speech and practising religion is being externally misused. A person who belongs to any religion he wants to spread his religion and for that, he even preaches the people to follow that particular religion. There is nothing wrong with and what is wrong will address always as wrong. To glorify Islam there is a particular way. I never understand why representatives of Islam (Muftis & Moulanas) are not exercising their Ibadah in their particular space which is “Masjid” (Mosque) or “Madrasa”? Why it is necessary to preach Islamic thoughts on roads & at public places after blocking the roads and by extorting the rights of other communities and the people who are not part of the practice? In Pakistan, this practice is now getting up. If the Shia sect wants to practice religion during the holy month of Muharram and then Sunni sect also want to practice religion in Rabi-ul-Awal both of them will choose public places & roads for procession (Jaloos). Do you mean that being in majority you can usurp minorities’ rights? Did you notice on Christmas day whether Christians block the roads for religious practice in a public place or they go to the allocated place which is Church? You ever saw Hindu in shape of Tollies when they practice their religious events? Even did you watch Sikhs during their religious events, whether they block your road or go to the Temple?

          If all above-asked questions have a negative answer then how we Muslims can justify practising our religious events in roads and public places? It means the majority of the country need to think. Though my religion has no direct relation to any other religion every religious person give respect to others religion because his religion taught him.

Nevertheless, as being an independent Islamic state, we can not accuse and abuse Christianity because we believe that Allah has sent Prophet Eisa(Jesus)  son of Mariyam and Prophet Daud for Jews. In short, every religion is respectable whether it is Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism or any other. And every religion taught their follower to live in peace and if we found a person which belongs to any religion and if he is extremist, terrorist or problematic; never means that his religion is bad or he is guided wrong by his religion to become a violator.

Recently when the holy month Muharram was started and soon after the holy month Rabi-ul-Awwal and then few days before when Faizabad (Islamabad) sit-in was held, I closely observed that right to freedom of religion is perhaps the most misused right in Pakistan. This is why because people wrongly believe it as a certificate to practice their religion on public places and highways; In fact, they use to violate other peoples right by performing their own freedom of religion. There is very harsh need to make a law to prevent from these kinds of protests and religion’s practices which violate others rights and which always create hurdle in the development of the country, where ambulances stuck on the road and innocent lives die.

As a citizen of Pakistan, we must feel the duty and we should learn not to transgress our limits and not to overemphasize on the freedom of speech and also the freedom to practice religion, most importantly in public place because by doing this we are often violating other people’s rights. Requesting to supreme-court if a law is possible soon or later it needs. And if this has been done, in the directives must be abided by all citizens as well as authorities irrespective of religions.