Weeks after photographs of ‘Gender Jihad’ activists in “bold dressing” in front of a monument dedicated to Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, sparked outrage in Pakistan, the Islamabad police have now arrested a man named Zulfiqar in the case.
Zulfiqar has been arrested by Islamabad Police. pic.twitter.com/WhEsMu48Xn
— Rao (@CasualRao) August 24, 2021
According to the police, Zulfiqar was one of the two activists who had posed in the photographs that had gone viral on the internet, drawing flak from a large number of Pakistanis, who demanded their arrests for posting “immoral photos” in front of the portrait of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, whom they refer to as Quaid-e-Azam.
Zulfiqar, a resident of Lahore, was arrested after a complaint was filed against him by a man called Rashid Malik. According to the FIR, the plaintiff alleged that the photos featuring Zulfiqar and another activist have violated the sanctity and respect of historical places and persons. The complainant pleaded strict action against the culprits for violating the honour of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
The police registered a case under Section 294 of the Pakistan Penal Code. Under this section, any person found guilty of immoral acts, obscene words or obscene songs in public places can be imprisoned for a maximum of three months or fined or both.
Pakistanis demand arrest after photos of ‘Gender Jihad’ activists in ‘bold attire’ in front of Jinnah’s portrait go viral
On August 2, Pakistani social media users were left miffed after they spotted photographs of a couple in “bold dressing” in front of a monument dedicated to Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the man behind the formation of Pakistan whom they “fondly” call Quaid-e-Azam. The photographs were first posted by a group identified as Mystical Shayari on Instagram.
The photographs were clicked on Express Highway, Islamabad. ANI’s Smita Prakash shared it on Twitter and hoped the couple is not hounded by the moral Police in Pakistan.
The photographs were taken by one Eman Mahsud, and dresses were designed by one Raja Wasey, who identifies himself as a drag artist on Instagram. While Mystical Shayari and Eman have deactivated their accounts, Wasey made his account private on Instagram after the backlash.
According to the Instagram bio of Mystical Shayari, they are part of what they call ‘Gender Jihad’.
While some Pakistanis called them vulgar, others termed the dresses ‘abnormal’. The photographs drew strong criticism from Pakistani social media users who urged authorities to take strict action against the two models for their “disrespectful” gesture. Many offended Pakistanis had then even asked police to arrest the activists for insulting the Quaid-e-Azam by wearing immoral dresses and posing in front of one of his portraits.
