Punjab govt announces Rs2m for each affected family of Jaranwala incident.
The Punjab government has approved the payment of Rs2 million to each of the families affected by the Jaranwala rampage as compensation for the losses sustained in the mob violence last week.
Caretaker Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi said on Sunday that relief cheques would be distributed to Jaranwala victims within the next two to three days.
For the first time in Punjab history, CM Naqvi presided over a cabinet meeting in a church as a rare show of solidarity with the Christian community.
The meeting was also attended by secretaries and senior officials.
Later, at Jamia Masjid Sabri in Jaranwala, he met members of the peace committee, including scholars from all schools of thought and personalities from other religions.
Also read: Mufti Taqi Usmani deplores Jaranwala violence
Naqvi told reporters after the meeting that the previous cabinet meeting unanimously approved compensation of Rs2 million for each of the affected Christian families in Jaranwala.
He also stated that Muslim scholars were willing to allow Christians to worship in mosques.
“I just had a meeting with peace Committee Jaranwala in which the religious leaders said that the Christians can use their mosques for worship if they have no place for it due to damage to their churches”.
“I think that the peace committee has given a very good message as it would help in pacifying and controlling the situation that erupted after the August 16 tragedy”, the CM added.
He said that the Jaranwala incident was a big tragedy.
“Therefore, we stand with our Christian brothers in this difficult time and the Peace Committee would also play its dynamic role in addressing the ill effects of this tragedy by promoting love and affection among both communities”, he said.
As Punjab govt announces Rs2m for each affected family of the Jaranwala incident, the chief minister further stated that rehabilitation of damaged churches had been started on Saturday and so far two churches had been restored.
“I also visited one of the churches where rehabilitation work was completed”, he said, adding that management of some churches had stopped restoration work temporarily as they wanted some changes and improvements in their design.
However, all necessary machinery would remain on hand, and rehabilitation work would resume in these churches as soon as their management permitted it.
He stated that the government would bear all costs of church rehabilitation and that he would return to Jaranwala until all issues concerning the affected people and their churches were resolved.
In response to a question, CM Naqvi stated that the government had already stated that the accused in the Jaranwala riots would be punished.
He added that no guilty person would ever be spared, but those who were proven innocent would be given due relief.
The provincial ministers and the chief minister had earlier arrived by coach at the AEC Church in Isa Nagari and attended the Sunday service there.
