Quetta Press Club receives threatening letter

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 15 February 2015 |  JP Staff Reporter

The Quetta Press Club has been threatened by a terror group demanding the exclusion of Christian members. An FIR has been lodged and security measures are being implemented.

Summary

ISLAMABAD: Quetta Press Club has received a threatening letter from little-known terror outfit Fidayan-e-Islam, demanding that entry of Christian members of the club should be banned.

Khalil Ahmad, the club's Secretary of Finance, told JournalismPakistan.com that a First Information Report (FIR) has also been lodged with the police.

“They (Fidayan-e-Islam) said the Christian members of the club preach Christianity to their colleagues; therefore their entry should be banned with immediate effect. Otherwise, they would bomb the press club,” he said.

Ahmad said there are only eight to ten Christian members including cameramen and photographers. The club received the letter through mail Saturday morning.

Capital City Police Officer (Quetta) Abdul Razzaq Cheema visited the club shortly after the letter was received and walkthrough gates were installed at the club entrance.

“We are also preparing a list of members and non-members of the club as we want to restrict the non-members to only press conferences and other relevant events in the club,” Ahmad said.

Ahmad who is also Bureau Chief of ’92 News’ said that CCTV cameras are also being installed at the club to keep an eye on “miscreants and outsiders.”

KEY POINTS:

• Fidayan-e-Islam issued a threat demanding a ban on Christian members.
• The club received the threat letter on Saturday morning.
• An FIR has been filed with the police regarding the threat.
• Security upgrades include walkthrough gates and CCTV installation.
• The club seeks to restrict non-members from its events.