'Itne naalayak log hain… keh rahe hain bijli giri hai': Pakistani man slams army for lying about Rawalpindi attack

Time of India

08-05-2025

A viral video featuring a Pakistani citizen mocking his own military's claim that lightning struck Rawalpindi has sparked widespread debate. The footage reflects rising public discontent with the Pakistan Army's handling of recent events. Meanwhile, controversial cleric Abdul Aziz Ghazi denounced the state, calling any war with India "unislamic" and likening the current regime to one of disbelief and tyranny. As India and Pakistan exchange military strikes, the deepening crisis within Pakistan's civil and political structures has come sharply into focus.
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In a video that has gone viral across Pakistan, a man can be seen criticising the army for its claim that a lightning strike hit Rawalpindi instead of admitting to a targeted strike. His voice is steady but biting. 'Itne naalayak log hain… keh rahe hain bijli giri hai. Sharam nahi aati inhe jhooth bolte hue…' he says, visibly angry. ("Such incompetent people... they're saying lightning struck. Aren't they ashamed to lie like this?")This moment, shared widely across platforms, has become a snapshot of growing public anger. For many in Pakistan, it captured the disbelief and frustration building over what is seen as an increasingly out-of-touch military narrative.Days earlier, another video surfaced. This time, it was Abdul Aziz Ghazi, the controversial cleric of Islamabad's Lal Masjid, delivering a public condemnation of the Pakistani military and government. Standing before a silent crowd, he asked: 'If war breaks out between India and Pakistan, will you support Pakistan?' When only a few raised hands, he remarked, 'There are very few [hands]. This means many are enlightened now. The matter is, war between Pakistan and India is not an Islamic war.'He then launched into a deeper critique of the state, calling it tyrannical and anti-Islamic. 'The system in Pakistan today is that of disbelief (kufr), a tyrannical system. It is worse than that of India. There isn't as much oppression in India as there is in Pakistan,' he said.Referring to the 2007 siege of Lal Masjid, Ghazi drew sharp comparisons. 'Did the Lal Masjid tragedy happen in India? Does India bomb its own citizens? Are people disappearing in India like they are in Pakistan?' he asked.He did not stop there. He cited alleged atrocities in Waziristan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 'The state bombed its own citizens. Have such atrocities occurred in India? Have their fighter jets bombed their people the way ours have? Are so many people reported missing in India? Here, people are exhausted from staging protests in search of their loved ones. Here, clerics are missing, journalists are missing, Tehreek-e-Insaf members are missing.'The footage, reportedly recorded on 2 May at Lal Masjid, has ignited a storm on Pakistani social media. Husain Haqqani, former ambassador to the US, also shared the video and added criticism of the cleric's stance, highlighting the irony of his current dissent given Lal Masjid's own past.Lal Masjid was built in 1965 and quickly became a nerve centre of Islamic radicalism in the capital. Its influence over young minds and links with Pakistan's intelligence networks were well known. The mosque's profile rose under the leadership of brothers Abdul Aziz and Abdul Rashid, who began openly challenging the government by calling for the imposition of Sharia law across Pakistan.This confrontation culminated in the 2007 military operation ordered by then-President Pervez Musharraf. Known as Operation Sunrise , the assault led to at least 154 deaths. It also triggered violence along the Afghan border, leading to more than 3,000 deaths in the following year as pro-Taliban fighters responded by ending a peace deal with Islamabad.Tensions between India and Pakistan reached new heights after the Indian Defence Ministry revealed that it had foiled coordinated Pakistani attacks targeting 15 locations across Northern and Western India. These included key airbases and civilian centres in Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. India's Integrated Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System reportedly neutralised the threat, including a Pakistani air defence system in Lahore.The Indian strikes were described as 'focused, measured and non-escalatory.' In its statement, the Defence Ministry added: 'It was also reiterated that any attack on military targets in India will invite a suitable response.' Earlier, Indian forces had conducted missile strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan, targeting locations like Bahawalpur, a known Jaish-e-Mohammad stronghold.'Indian response has been in the same domain with the same intensity as Pakistan,' the ministry said. It confirmed that an air defence system in Lahore was neutralised.Meanwhile, Pakistan has increased firing across the Line of Control, targeting sectors in Jammu and Kashmir. 'Sixteen innocent lives have been lost, including three women and five children,' the Defence Ministry said.In a statement reinforcing restraint, it concluded, 'Indian Armed Forces reiterate their commitment to non-escalation, provided it is respected by the Pakistani military.'As conflict simmers on the borders, Pakistan's internal fault lines are becoming harder to ignore. From mocking the army's public statements to openly rejecting the legitimacy of war, voices once considered fringe are now being heard in the mainstream.Whether it's a frustrated citizen on the street or a fiery cleric with a dark past, the message is becoming louder: the old narratives no longer hold.