News
Friday, November 16, 2012
Senate hears suggestions to heal Karachi wounds* PPP senator says provincial committees be formed to maintain peace; suspected terrorists should not be freed
By Ijaz Kakakhel
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party’s leader and senior politician Senator Raza Rabbani on Thursday came up with some suggestions to improve the situation in Karachi.
Speaking in the Senate, the veteran politician called for action against terrorists after evolving consensus amongst political and religious parties in Karachi, which has long faced violence, ranging from sectarian and ethnic to political. He said coordination among the state agencies needed to be increased. The senator said committees should be formed on the provincial level to maintain peace, adding that suspected terrorists should not be freed from lockups and detainees should be given their legal rights.
Rabbani said that SHOs should not be appointed at the behest of others while law enforces should be provided with phone-tracking system facility. Efforts were continuing to pit state institutions against each other, he warned, adding that parliament and judiciary were attacked to scandalise the institutions. He noted the government has to take some basic decisions regarding law and order otherwise the situation in the country might become similar to that of the former USSR. The steps taken by the government for restoration of law and order in the country are not enough, he opined.
Speaking on the occasion, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said the country was passing through a critical stage of its history and blamed both local and foreign aggression for bad law and order situation in the country. The minister said he would disclose names of certain people, groups and countries if an in-camera session was arranged on Karachi and Balochistan unrest. Speaking about the deteriorating security situation in Karachi, the minister said sectarian clashes, land mafia and now the shifting of Taliban there were some of the main problems of the city. Earlier, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz staged a walkout over police mishandling of Talal Bughti, son of slain Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, during a raid on his house a few days ago.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk