Dealing a blow to President Pervez Musharraf, an alliance of Pakistan's religious seminaries Wednesday announced they will not accept the December 31 deadline set by him for expelling hundreds of foreign students, saying the order was "discriminatory" and "unconstitutional".
In the aftermath of reports that one of the suicide bombers behind the July 7 attacks on London's transit system, that left 56 people dead, had visited a madrassa in Pakistan, Musharraf had set the deadline for foreign students to leave the seminaries even if they had valid visas.
But Hanif Jalandhry, secretary, Coordination of Ittehad- e-Tanzeemat-e-Deenia, an alliance of religious seminaries, said that Musharraf had made the announcement "without taking religious institutions and ruling coalition into confidence".
"The decision to expel foreign students is discriminatory, partial, unconstitutional and un-Islamic," he said.
The alliance has also called a convention of religious leaders in Islamabad on January 1 to chalk out future strategy, he said adding, leaders of all political parties will also be invited to adopt a united stand to force the government to withdraw its decision.
He said that foreigners studying in religious institutions have valid visas and no objection certificates from their respective countries.
"These students have neither committed any crime nor involved in illegal activities," he said.
Religious seminaries have been seeking a meeting with Musharraf for four months to discuss the issue, but no time has been given to them, he claimed.
More than 700 foreign students are studying in Pakistani madrassas, Jalandhry said. When President Musharraf had set their expulsion deadline, it was officially stated that some 1,400 foreign students are studying in religious seminaries.
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