Siraj ul Haq visits Army Public School Peshawar, pays tributes to staff and students

Lahore: Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Sirajul Haq, has said that the students and  the teaching staff of the Army Public School (APS) Peshawar, had given a new courage and determination to the entire Pakistani nation.

He was addressing the students and the staff of the APS during a visit to the institution that became the target of the bloody target attack on December 16 last resulting in the martyrdom of more than 150 young students and their teachers. Senior Minister of the K P, Inayatullah Khan, provincial ministers Muzaffar Syed and Kashif Azam Chishti and Hafiz Hashmat Khan, also accompanied the JI chief.

Sirajul Haq said that the Peshawar tragedy was a terrible chapter in our national history. He said that the students and the youth were the future of the nation, and on the 16^th of December, an attempt was made to deprive us of our future. He said that this was his second visit to the APS and added that the JI stood with the nation against terrorism.

Sirajul Haq said that the security of the educational institutions was primarily the responsibility of the government and the entire burden on this score should not be placed on the shoulders of the school managements. He said that if the present police force was not enough, fresh recruitments should be made on emergency basis.

On arrival at the APS, the JI chief was warmly received by the school staff and students. He paid rich tributes to the lady teachers of the institution who had tried to save the lives of the dear students even at the cost of their own life.

Talking to the media at the spot, the JI chief said that the goal before the JI was an Islamic and prosperous Pakistan. He said that Pakistan was not merely a piece of land, it connoted an ideology and a philosophy of life, and the JI would achieve the goal with the support of the masses.

The JI chief also visited the Warsak Public School close to the APS, and also addressed the staff and the students there.  He also went round the class rooms and talked to the students. He said he was glad to note the peace and determination on the face of the students. Speaking on the occasion, he reiterated that it was the responsibility of the state to protect the life and property of the people and also the educational institutions, markets and public places.