Assault on Sufism, Pashtun poet Rehman Baba’s mausoleum bombed

PESHAWAR The mausoleum of renowned Pashto mystic poet Abdur Rehman Baba was bombed by unidentified miscreants, badly damaging its structure and his grave in the Hazarkhwani area early on Thursday. No one was hurt in the bombing, but the blast has left residents deeply shaken.The shrine’s watchman had received a threat from suspected militants on his cell phone three days ago. He told police that the attack took place to crack down on the tradition of women making pilgrimages to the site of the grave of Rehman baba; a 17 century poet, revered for his message of love and peace. The high intensity device almost destroyed the grave of the Rehman Baba and the gates of a mosque, canteen and conference hall situated in the spacious Rehman Baba Complex.Police said the bombers had tied explosives around the pillars of the tombs, to pull down the mausoleum. Following the occurrence visibly shaken followers and volunteers were seen wielding sticks and forcing the visitors to leave the area, fearing that the badly damaged structure of the mausoleum might crumble down. The police said they suspected the involvement of outlawed Lashkar-i-Islam chief, Mangal Bagh in the incident but were investigating the matter to ascertain the facts. ‘We have been able to give them a black eye and this is their way of getting back at us. Its pure desperation,’ a senior police official said. The news of the occurrence soon spread like wildfire and a large number of his followers and other people visited the shrine.