By NNN-PTI
Islamabad : Hundreds of students on Friday took control of the Lal Masjid here and drove out the government-appointed cleric from the mosque after it was reopened for Friday prayers for the first time after security forces stormed it on July 11 in which 102 people were killed.
A large number of followers of Lal Masjid's sacked cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz, whose younger brother Abdul Rashid Ghazi was killed along with several militants in the military crackdown, virtually invaded the newly renovated mosque and prevented the Maulana Muhammad Ashfaq Madni from offering the Friday prayers.
Chanting pro-Jihad slogans and hailing Gazhi and others as martyrs, the crowd mostly comprised of bearded youth believed to be released students of the boys madrasa attached to the Lal Masjid demanded the police to bring Aziz, who is currently held in judicial custody, to led prayers.
Virtually shown live on the local TV channels, the violent crowd drove out Maulana Madni from the mosque. Madni was later taken to safe place by his followers.
The crowd also prevented the Jamat-e-Islami leader Liaqat Baloch from offering prayers. Baloch, whose party chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed threatened to force his way into the mosque if it was not opened for prayers today was escorted out.
Hussain, also the President of the Islamist alliance Mutahhida Majlis Amal, was no where to be seen.
Several students were seen painting the mosque, which was painted in apple green on the instruction of government, in red colour. Some students were seen flying flags of Lal Masjid on the terrace.
Hundreds of people some of them curious onlookers were ushered in after screening them through the metal detectors.