Reacting to a statement made by JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday that the remarks made by the seasoned politician were an affront to the sacrifices given by Pakistan Army personnel, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
In a series of tweets on social media platform, X, the minister said that he was not expecting Fazl, who is also an eminent religious scholar, to make such kind of remarks. “He ought to have been more careful in the selection of his words,” he added.
مولانا فضل الرحمان ایک کہنہ مشق سیاست دان اور ممتاز مذہبی رہنما ہیں، اس لیے ان سے الفاظ کے انتخاب میں زیادہ ذمہ داری کی توقع کی جاتی ہے۔ فوجی جوانوں کی وطن کے لیے قربانی کو ان کی تنخواہ سے جوڑنا نہ صرف غیرمنصفانہ ہے بلکہ شہداء اور ان کے خاندانوں کی دل آزاری کے مترادف ہے۔ کوئی شخص…
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) July 13, 2026
مولوی فضل الرحمان صاحب کا یہ کہنا کہ فوجی تنخواہ لیتا ہے، اس لیے اسی کی کام ہے کہ وہ جان قربان کرے، ایک شرمناک اور بے حس دلیل ہے۔ تنخواہ جان کی قیمت نہیں ہوتی۔ اگر پچاس ہزار یا ایک لاکھ روپے موت کا معاوضہ ہیں تو یہ دلیل دینے والے اپنے بیٹوں کو اسی رقم کے بدلے بارودی سرنگوں، دہشت… pic.twitter.com/JiUj3GmJmf
— Markhor Pakistan (@AabparaX) July 12, 2026
He further said that the statement that Pakistan Army personnel laid down their lives because they were paid for that was unjustified and had hurt the sentiments of families of the martyrs. “No soldier sacrifices his life merely for the sake of salary. But because he is a follower of a particular ideology and is attached to his motherland,” he opined.
Asif said that the war on terrorism was continuing and jawans of Pakistan Army and law-enforcement agencies as well as ordinary citizens were laying down their lives.
“The statement made by the JUI-F chief is not political, but is an act of moral degradation.”
Meanwhile, commenting on Fazl’s statement, Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan said that the JUI-F chief should be in his senses while making such kind of remarks. “Pakistan Army is our pride,” he said, adding that each and every soldier was sacrificing his life while fighting against terrorists and defending the country.
Lashing out at Fazl, Senior Sindh Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said that the army’s martyrs were the nation’s pride.
He said that belittling the services of the army personnel was unfortunate.
He further said that it was obligatory on each and every Pakistani to show respect for the forces.
Memon was of the view that although in a democracy everyone had the right to express his or her views, this did not give license to people to target the country’s armed forces, ignore their sacrifices and make controversial statements about them.