News
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
POL price hike, worsening law and order‘Friends’ join ‘foes’ in Lower House
* Treasury faces embarrassment as MQM, ANP walk out against increase in oil prices
* PML-N stages walkout on petroleum prices, target killings, bad law and order
By Tanveer Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: Three successive walkouts against an increase in prices of petroleum products and the fast deteriorating law and order situation in the country marred the proceedings of the Lower House of parliament on Monday before the treasury could move a resolution to discuss the precarious security situation in the country.
The treasury side faced embarrassment on the first day of the new session when two of its allies, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Awami National Party (ANP), walked out from the session as a mark of protest against increase in prices of petroleum products, along with the opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which also staged a walkout against increase in petroleum prices as well as over the target killings and bad law and order situation in the country.
The session on its onset reverberated with the strongly worded speech of PPP leader Abdul Qadir Gilani – who took oath as member of the House after his election on his father’s seat – who said those who had favoured the disqualification of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani should be ashamed of their conduct, saying that the larger bench of the people had given a verdict in his favour.
However, later the government side was on the back foot when its allies, MQM and ANP, walked away from the proceedings by lambasting it over miseries of the people due to increase in petroleum prices, which led to new wave of inflation in the country.
The PML-N side also took the opportunity to further blast the government on this issue as well as the killings of Hazaras and Shias in Gilgit-Baltistan and the continuous spree of target killings in Karachi.
The issue of a minor Christian girl, Rimsha Masih, who has been held on charges of blasphemy, also emerged in the House when Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) member Nausheen Saeed condemned the incident, saying that the case had proved how the blasphemy law could be misused and regretted that the case had brought a bad name to the country.
MQM member Wasim Akhtar said that when it had become evident that the case was fabricated against the girl, there was no reason to keep her in custody. However, Interior Minister Rehman Malik replied that after registration of an FIR, the matter was in the court.
Malik said the case was a conspiracy against the country and assured the House that he would expose the real culprits behind it in today’s (Tuesday’s) session of the House.
On the precarious law and order situation in the country, the interior minister said that he would speak about it on the next day of the session, Wednesday, when the House would start a debate on the resolution moved on the law and order situation in the country.
Earlier, Ahsan Iqbal blasted the government for what he said was its total failure on various fronts. He was particularly critical of the unending spree of target killings in the country and the massacre of Hazaras and Shias in Gilgit-Baltistan.
The PML-N leader demanded that the Sindh and Balochistan governments should resign after their failure to secure the people’s lives in their respective provinces.
He condemned the increase in petroleum prices and said that it had broken the back of the common man.
In a sarcastic remark to MQM’s walkout from the session, he advised the party to walk away from the government rather than walking out from the session over increase in prices of petroleum products.
MQM member Abdul Qadir Khanzda on a point of order said the House had formed a committee sometime back to review the prices of petroleum products but it had never been consulted regarding the issue. He urged the National Assembly speaker to take up the issue and look into the matter that why OGRA had never consulted the special committee.
ANP member Pir Haider Ali Shah also condemned the price hike and announced to boycott the session against “the unjust act”.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk