Popular Imam applauds Muslim killer of pro-Christian politician

Lorraine Caballero Monday, March 07, 2016

Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri, the bodyguard accused of assassinating Pakistani governor Salman Taseer, is detained at the site of Taseer's shooting in Islamabad on January 4, 2011. | REUTERS / Mehdi Shah

A popular British Imam has applauded Mumtaz Qadri, a Muslim who was recently executed for killing a pro-Christian politician in Pakistan.

Just this week, Mumtaz Qadri was hanged for killing moderate Pakistani politician Salmaan Taseer five years ago. Taseer had voiced out against the killing of Christian minority minister Shahbaz Batti, and both politicians championed the rights of Christians targeted using the blasphemy laws of Pakistan, according to Breitbart.

After the execution of Mumtaz Qadri, Imam Muhammad Asim Hussain wrote a lengthy message on Facebook praising the killer for murdering someone to honor the Prophet Muhammad. He also called Qadri a martyr and said the latter's execution was wrong.

"A dark day in the history of Pakistan; the day Ghazi Mumtaz was wrongfully executed and martyred in the way of Allah, when he did what he did in honour of the Propher," said Imam Hussain in his Facebook status.

Hussain, one of the most influential Imams in the UK, has more than 136,000 followers on Facebook. He also appears regularly on the Ummah TV Channel and has millions of followers on YouTube. His recent post drew the approval of 4,000 people and was shared more than 700 times.

The Telegraph has spoken out against Hussain's statement in a write-up titled "We Must Not Tolerate British Imams Who Applaud Barbarism in Pakistan."

The publication points out that Muslim governor Taseer was killed by his own bodyguard after he defended Asia Bibi, a Christian woman who was given the death sentence for alleged blasphemy. The politician had called for the review of the medieval blasphemy laws of the country.

However, Qadri's execution has prompted many Sunni Muslims to hail him a hero and a martyr.

The publication also called for the condemnation of not only Hussain's glorification of Mumtaz Qadri, but also of Taseer's death and the death sentence of a woman over alleged blasphemy. The write-up ends will a request to pray for Asia Bibi who will face a Lahore court on Mar. 26 for the final decision on her case.