Islam teaches respect of other religions: Gilani
ISLAMABAD, Feb 3 (APP): Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Thursday said that Islam is the religion of peace and tolerance which teaches its followers to respect all religions of the world.The Prime Minister expressed these views while talking to a group of parliamentarians who called on him at his chamber in Parliament House.He said that Islam was not spread by force rather the message was disseminated through the policy of religious tolerance of Sufis and Aulia Allah.
Unfortunately, Islam and Muslims are being bracketed with extremism and sectarianism which is an attempt to tarnish the image of Muslim Ummah.
He mentioned that Pakistan is an Islamic state and the government is taking all appropriate steps to protect rights of the minorities. 
“We are also formulating policies to alleviate poverty and redress the grievances of the masses in accordance with the teachings of Islam.”
The government, the Prime Minister said, wants to stop victimization due to misuse of any law of the land including blasphemy law.
Any tension created in the society due to religious extremism, he added, causes problems for overseas Pakistanis.
The Prime Minister stressed upon the need for dialogue among all segments to solve national issues including religious extremism.
Sahibzada Fazal Karim, MNA and other parliamentarians agreed to the proposal of the Prime Minister to convene a meeting of Ulema belonging to all sects to seek their proposals to control the misuse of blasphemy law.
The Prime Minister reiterated the resolve of the government to take steps for the revival of economy. He said the government’s economic team is consulting all political parties and soon a common economic agenda will emerge.
The parliamentarians lauded the Prime Minister’s proposal to consult all the religious parties to seek their views. They also apprised him of development activities in their respective constituencies.
Raja Pervez Ashraf, Minister of Water and Power, Syed Sumsam Bukhari, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and MNAs Ms. Palwasha Bahram, Mrs. Bachani, Ch. Tariq, Maulana Agha Muhammad, Saeed Zafar, Ms. Tahira Aurangzeb, Syed Zafar Ali Shah and Sher M.  Baloch met with the Prime Minister.