Ire at Pak PM’s Jesus remarks
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has drawn the ire of many, including hundreds of social media users, after he said Jesus Christ has no mention in history.
“Moses got some mention, but Jesus Christ has no mention in history,” he said while addressing the opening ceremony of the two-day International Rahmatul-Lil-Alameen Conference in Islamabad on Tuesday. A video of his controversial statement went viral and was widely shared over social media.
Many people took to Twitter to criticise him for what they said was his “ignorance” and lack of knowledge of the Quran.
Referring to Christian woman Asia Bibi, who recent acquittal of charges of blasphemy by the Supreme Court triggered nationwide protests, Khurram Qureshi commented on Twitter: “As absolutely stupid as this is, it is also dangerous. By claiming that Jesus has no mention in history, or whatever that means, he’s introducing an element of illegitimacy towards the Christian faith. Especially considering his audience at this event & the ongoing #AsiaBibi saga.”
Zia Ur Rehman tweeted, “Dear Khan Sahib, I will recommend a book ‘Al-Quran’ in which Hazrat Isa (A.S) is the most mentioned person directly and indirectly. You visited Madina now few times, they have left a place next to our Prophet (S.A.W) where Isa will be buried.”
@IffiViews added, “Surah An Nisa mai hai reference”, while Pirated Kashmiri tweeted, “Puri ki Puri surah Mariyam hai jis main hazrat Isa ka zikr hai.
“Isa ibn e Mariyam”, an Islamic name for Jesus Christ, is mentioned about 25 times throughout the Quran.
Among the many who condemned Khan’s remarks was senior PML-N leader and former minister Ahsan Iqbal, who tweeted, “Quran has many references of Hazrat Isa (AS); how will trolls defend this crazy statement of IK?”