News
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Embarrassing day for government in National Assembly
* MNAs from treasury benches censure highhandedness
of bureaucracy, police in Sindh* Protest implication of Yousaf Talpur’s son in fake case
By Tanveer Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: It was an embarrassing day for the government in the National Assembly on Friday when MNAs on treasury benches protested against the highhandedness of police and officials of the Sindh government that implicated the son of a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) legislator, Nawab Yousaf Talpur, in a fake case.
After the winding up of the question hour session by acting Speaker Faisal Karim Kundi, PPP MNA Yousaf Talpur from Umarkot, Sindh, on a point of order, drew the attention of the chair towards the case registered against his son, Taimur Talpur, who also happens to be a member of the Sindh Assembly.
He told the House that some days back, during a meeting, the Umarkot district coordination officer (DCO) and his son Taimur had exchanged harsh words (over some matter). “The DCO tried to influence the Umarkot district police officer (DPO) to frame my son in a fake attempt-to-murder case. As the DPO refused to oblige he was transferred and a new police official was brought in, who in no time acted upon the DCO’s directive and registered a false case against Taimur,” said Yousaf while narrating the whole story.
The PPP legislator deplored that the bureaucracy in Umarkot had become so powerful that it didn’t even hesitate to register fake cases against elected representatives. “Even the Sindh chief minister was helpless. He had been informed about the plan to transfer the DPO on the whim of the DCO, but he could not stop it,” he added.
“Sindh CM had assured me that the DPO would not be changed. But, his assurance did no good as a new DPO later took the charge and framed my son,” he said.
He informed the House that the same DCO had, before assuming the charge in Umarkot, misbehaved with provincial minister Pir Mazharul Haq while he was posted to Dadu district.
Yousaf Talpur lamented the way elected representative of the ruling party was implicated in the case, and said the bureaucracy had no regard for elected representatives.
Nawab Abul Ghani Talpur of the PPP, expressing solidarity with Yousaf Talpur, lambasted the government for its failure to protect public representatives from the highhandedness of the bureaucracy.
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s (PML-Q) Raza Hayat Hiraj said that it was a serious issue which should be probed and the responsible DCO and DPO should be taken to task for registering a fake case against an elected representative. He proposed that a House committee should summon the two officials, and if they were found guilty in the matter, they must be punished to set a precedent.
PML-Q’s Marvi Memon alleged that the government was involved in such illegal acts to harass elected representatives.
On behalf of the government, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Khursheed Shah assured the House that he would take up the matter with the Sindh chief minister and would come back with an answer in the next session scheduled for Monday.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the government was ready to form a joint investigation team to find whether the officials overstepped their authority.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk