News
Friday, June 17, 2011
Pandemonium in Senate over Haripur incident
* Harsh words exchanged after JUI-F holds ANP responsible for the incident by virtue of being in government in the province
By Ijaz Kakakhel
ISLAMABAD: The Upper House of parliament witnessed a pandemonium on Thursday due to an exchange of harsh words between the members of Jamiat Ulema-e- Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Awami National Party (ANP) over the Haripur incident where a 50-year-old woman was stripped naked and paraded in public.
On a point of order, ANP female parliamentarian, Farah Aaqil Shah, raised the issue and termed it un-Islamic, against ethical norms, and said it was responsibility of the government to provide protection to every citizen of the country. “Such issues disfigure the country’s image abroad and foreigners question what is going on in an Islamic country,” she said.
She stressed the need for changing mindset of people about such shameful incidents. “Degradation of a women is not a good omen,” she said and suggested that strict action should be taken against the culprits in order to avoid recurrence of such shameful incidents.
JUI-F Senator, Haji Ghulam Ali, speaking on the occasion, said that the incident occurred under the watchful eye of the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), where ANP-led coalition government was in power.
He said Farah Aaqil should take up the issue with the KPK government and take strict action. He said that the KPK’s provincial government did nothing for the welfare and protection of people. “Instead, it is involved in massive corruption,” he blamed. Responding to the JUI-F member’s statement, ANP Senator Zahid Khan said JUI-F always supported dictatorships in the country. When all political parties stood united against the former dictator, Pervez Musharraf, JUI-F was the only party who supported him.
He claimed that during the MMA government blood of Pakhtun nation spilled. He further blamed that the JUI-F provided weapons to the Taliban. “Members of the JUI-F, who once used bicycles for transportation, now own luxurious cars,” he alleged and questioned where these vehicles came from.
Haji Mohammad Adeel of ANP said that in Hazara, imam of a mosque had given a verdict concerning women and he was responsible for it. He opined that opportunism and materialism was spreading fast among the society, particularly among Maulvies (religious figures).
He said that the situation could not improve until imams of mosques distanced themselves from preaching hatred at madrassas. “The country was looted in the name of Islam,” he added. In the meantime, members of ANP and JUI-F shouted slogans against each other and it appeared that the House had turned into a fish market, where no one was ready to listen other’s point of view.
However, due to the intervention by treasury members, the agitating Senators were calmed down. Senate also passed unanimously the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission Bill, 2011. Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Maula Bux Chandio moved the bill in the Upper House to provide for regulation, coordination and policy direction for vocational and technical training.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk