LAHORE: The steering committee of the religious parties has condemned the arrest and the police batoncharge of the participants in chehlum of Mumtaz Qadri in Islamabad.

The committee which met at Mansoora here on Monday, warned the masses of the `elements trying to drift the peaceful Tehrik-iNizam-i-Mustafa towards violence` Presided over by Jamaat-iIslami`s Liaqat Baloch, it decided that a Nizam-iMustafa Conference would be held at Mansoora on April 2 to be attended by leading scholars, both men and women. Before it, heads of the religious parties would meet under the aegis of the Jamaatud Dawa (JuD), it was decided.

The moot was attended byJuD`s Hafiz Abdur Rahman Makki, JUI`s Maulana Asim Makhdoom, Rabita Tul Madaris` Maulana Abdul Malik, custodian of the Mian Mir shrine, Pir Iqtidar Haroon Gilani, Jamiat-i-Ahle Hadith leader Dr Abdul Ghafoor Rashid, JI`s Asadullah Bhutto, Mian MagsoodandAmirulAzeem.

After the meeting, the committee members visited the Jinnah and Sheikh Zayed hospitals and enquired after thoseinjured in the Gulshan-i-Iqbal suicide attack on Sunday.

Meanwhile, vice-president of Tehrik-e-Insaf`s doctors` wing Dr Zubair Qadir has joined Jamaat-i-Islami after meeting with party emir Senator Sirajul Haq here on Monday.

Dr Qadir said the honest and sincere leadership of the JI alone could steer the country out of the prevailing crisis.