News
Friday, August 26, 2011
Govt didn’t fail on Karachi: Gilani* PM says government will resist all pressures to maintain law and order in Karachi by taking across the board action
* Courts will decide Moonis Elahi issue
By Tanveer Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Thursday brushed aside the perception of the government failure to curb the raging violence in Karachi, saying that the law enforcement agencies (LEAs) were successfully conducting an operation in the city to put an end to the bloodshed.
“Military has not bee called in Karachi but the civil armed forces are carrying out this operation to flush out the criminal elements from the metropolis,” Gilani asserted and categorically declared that government has not shown any weakness at any stage in the port city against the militants and terrorists.
The prime minister, who was talking to the media persons at an Iftar-dinner at the Prime Minister’s House, said that it was decided in the provincial cabinet meeting that across the board action would be taken against the criminals disturbing the peace in Karachi and vowed that no hurdle would be tolerated to restore peace to the mega city.
Gilani said that the violence in Karachi had been an old phenomenon as since his entry in the politics, the city had been struck with the terror and in every regime, the law and order situation turned from bad to worst.
However, he resolved that the government would resist all pressures to maintain the law and order in the city by taking actions against all those who involved in spoiling the peaceful environment.
He said that the federal government would not interfere in the Karachi directly as maintenance of law and order was a provincial subject. However, he said, it would extend all possible assistance to the provincial government, whenever and wherever it required.
About the timeframe of the operation in the Karachi, Gilani said that matter pertained to the Sindh government and they were in a better position to know how long the operation would continue in the city.
The prime minister said that the government attached great priority to Karachi, being a financial hub of the country and would employ all possible means to save the lives of the citizens.
Gilani skipped a question when he was asked to comment on the statement of MQM Chief Altaf Hussain, demanding his resignation over the Karachi violence and in lighter vein remarked that “Altaf Hussain is our favourite and we never mind what he says”.
On a question about the precarious security situation in insurgency-hit Balochistan, the prime minister said that the chief minister and the governor of the province had been mandated to talk to the estranged elements in the province.
He also claimed to have implemented 70 percent of Aghaz-e-Haqooq-e-Balochistan package and hoped that the rest would also be implemented to remove the grievances of the people of the province.
On the issue of Moonis Elahi, the prime minister said since the matter is subjudice, the courts will decide the matter.
Speaking about the overall law and order situation and extremism in the country, Gilani said that the whole nation was united against this menace. “This is a concern for the government, army, police, FC and civil society and all these sections were in agreement to fight against this menace”, Gilani said.
About the inflation in the country, Gilani said that the federal government was taking all possible measures in collaboration with the provincial governments to check the inflation.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk