Religious leaders offer help

NEW DELHI, Dec 28 (UNI) — Naib Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari today said that Muslim leaders were willing and ready to help the government in any way to end the five-day-old hostage crisis.

Condemning the hijacking of the Indian Airlines aircraft, the Naib imam said he had offered their services to the Prime Minister’s Office last evening in bringing the hijacking ordeal to an end.

He said people backed government’s efforts to secure the safe release of passengers and the crew.

Syed Ahmed Bukhari said the hijacking incident was un-Islamic. He also stated that Islam prohibited violence and bloodshed in the holy month of Ramzan.

He said the government should seriously consider the release of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen Maulana Masood Azhar if it saved the lives of 155 passengers. However, he lamented the fact that hijacked aircraft was allowed to leave Amritsar airport. The hijacking drama would have ended in Amritsar if the aircraft was prevented from taking off.

He also appreciated the role of the Taliban in rendering all possible assistance to the Indian Government in the resolution of the hijacking crisis.

Meanwhile leaders of various religions on Tuesday offered to the government to go to Kandahar on a purely humanitarian mission to persuade the hijackers to release the hostages.

Grouped under the banner of ‘Religions for Social Justice’, leaders of the Hindu, Jain, Muslim, Sikh and Christian faiths also appealed to the hijackers to assure the hostages minimum living facilities.

The world community also should intercede on behalf of the hostages of different nationalities and secure their freedom from misery and bondage, “front convenor” Swami Agnivesh said.

“We, on our part, are prepared to go to Kandahar and talk to the hijackers on behalf of the passengers who are kept as hostages,’’ he added.

Condemning the hijacking, the acting chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind Maulana Syed Jalaludin said that playing with the lives of innocent persons and putting them in a dangerous situation was illegal and condemnable.

The All India Muslim Unity Front and Students Actions Committee also deplored the hijacking in strong words.

“It is a matter of shock and great concern that the Pakistani terrorists hijacked the plane in the holy month of Ramzan and innocent people are suffering since the last five days”, AIMUF president Mohammad Younus Siddiqui and SAC president Naseeruddin Shah said in a joint statement.

If the hijackers are ‘true’ Muslims and respect Islam and the Shariat, they would release their captives unconditionally, they said, appealing to Muslim leaders of the world to work towards their release.

Suicide threat by hostages’ kin

NEW DELHI, Dec 28 (UNI) — It was a case of patience running short. With no specific reply from government officials on the release of hijacked passengers of ill-fated plane relatives of hostages raised slogans against Union Home Minister L.K. Advani, even threatened to “commit suicide” outside the Prime Minister’s residence.

During a meeting with senior officials of the Civil Aviation Ministry, Indian Airlines and the Ministry of External Affairs, the relatives demanded a “concrete answer” from the government, rejecting the usual answer of “negotiations are going on”.

“Let the government take a firm and concrete stand, instead of wasting time, which only increases the hell-like condition of the captives,” said Sanjay Garg, whose newly-wed sister and her husband are among the hostages.

Kids decry hijacking

MUMBAI, Dec 28 (UNI) — Kashmiri children have strongly decried the unfortunate hijack of the Indian Airliner airbus and felt that no mercy should be shown in handling terrorists and hijackers.

“We felt very bad when the news of hijack of the aeroplane reached us on Friday,” says 14-year-old Amrik Singh, who hails from the Rajori sector and a part of the 40-member team of kids from Poonch and Rajori sector visiting Mumbai on a national integration programme — Him-e-Sagar.

“It is really condemnable,” he said, adding that hijackers should be dealt with strongly. “This kind of incident should not happen,” says Zakir Ahmed, whose father Mohammad Azhar, a BSF personnel was killed couple of years back in an encounter with terrorists. “Hame bahoot kharab laga,” he said emotionally.

“We should they (terrorists) hijack an aircraft and threaten the lives of innocent people,” says Ahmed, who aspire to join the Army and serve the nation. Another 15-year-old Jagmohan Singh also feels the same way. And so also feels Ram Chander.

“This is a very bad incident and we have sympathies for the family members of the hostages,” they said.

The 40-member team, which was escorted by two teachers and an Army officer, Maj A. Malhotra, have visited Jammu and New Delhi and later arrived in Mumbai. From Mumbai they will proceed to Kanyakumari, from where they will return to Jammu and then to Rajori and Poonch. In Mumbai they visited on-board naval ships, and other places. Tomorrow they are scheduled to visit Film City to see their favourite actors.

In Mumbai today they were accorded a warm reception by Brig T.K. Kaul, Commander of Mumbai sub-area. Brig Kaul, who himself hails from Jammu and Kashmir shook hands with all kids and interacted with them.