How this Pakistani cleric sparked a debate over #AmmarKaQatilKon

What happened: An online battle is currently trending on Twitter with hashtag #AmmarKaQatilKon between two factions, with one demanding punishments ranging from jail to beheading for Pakistani cleric Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza’s alleged blasphemy and the other one supporting him for quoting a Hadith. Back story: The entire controversy revolves around Hadith 2812 from Sahih al-Bukhari and its interpretation in relation to Hazrat Ameer Muawiya, Islam’s first Caliph. He was a companion of Prophet Mohammad, yet he is still a divisive figure among Muslims.

Conflict in opinion: Most Sunnis acknowledge Muawiya as a companion of the prophet and see him as one of those who have gone to heaven. Shias, on the other hand, do not recognise him as a pious figure and blame him for his war against Ali, whom the Shias see as the legitimate successor of Prophet Mohammad. The controversy: In recent weeks, there have been conflicts between Muawiya followers and opponents, and Muhammad Ali Mirza sparked a controversy with one of his video sermons. He suggested from a Hadith that Prophet Mohammad had labelled Muawiya an angry rebel. Mirza quoted the Hadith as following: “May Allah be merciful to Ammar. He will be killed by a rebellious aggressive group. Ammar will invite them to (obey) Allah and they will invite him to the (Hell) fire.” Who was Ammar? Ammar ibn Yasir was one of the Prophet’s (PBUH) devoted companions. After Prophet Mohammad’s (PBUH) death, he became devoted to Ali and is respected by Shias. Ammar was also a major military commander. According to history, he was killed by Muawiya’s army during the battle of Siffin, which was fought between Muawiya’s Sunni forces and the Shia forces of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the first Shia Imam. What you need to know: Now, because Ammar was killed by Muawiya’s forces during the conflict, and as Hadith 2812 claims that the Prophet said Ammar would be killed by a rebellious aggressive party, Shias take this as the Prophet labelling Muawiya an ‘aggressive rebel,’ which is the source of the controversy. Sunnis are reluctant to label Muawiya as a ‘rebel’ based solely on one Hadith, because he was otherwise known as a companion of the Prophet, and the Prophet said nothing against him during his lifetime. This has resulted in a long-running dispute on the subject. With increased religious sectarianism among Muslims, the debate over Muawiya has heated up, with Shias strongly opposing him and Sunnis strongly supporting him.