48 religious seminaries in Sindh have 'terror links': Police

KARACHI: At least 48 religious seminaries in Pakistan's southern Sindh province have been found to have links with terrorists and banned outfits, police said today.

Speaking at a meeting with religious scholars of different sects, Sindh Police Inspector General (IG) Ghulam Hyder Jamali noted that 23 of these religious seminaries were in Karachi.

According to the IG, the report about the seminaries/madrassas has been compiled after constant surveillance and intelligence feedback.

Jamali was meeting the Ulema to decide on a uniform method for registration of all religious seminaries in the province, a government official said.

Out of the 23 seminaries in Karachi, 13 of them were in Hyderabad and the rest in other parts of Sindh, he said.

The police chief told the Ulema that the seminaries were found to have links with terrorists and banned outfits which was "unacceptable".

The religious scholars or Ulema, meanwhile, had told the police chief to publicly disclose names of these seminaries as it was unfair to suggest all seminaries and madrassas were involved in terrorism or with terrorists.

Despite a crackdown against criminals, militants and land grabbers in Karachi since late 2013, the police and paramilitary rangers have visibly avoided raiding religious seminaries or madrassas in Karachi or other parts of the province.