Minister advises PPP to raise Asim’s issue in Apex Committee meeting

ISLAMABAD: Federal Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid on Thursday advised the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to raise the issue of Dr Asim Hussain’s arrest in the Sindh Apex Committee instead of levelling baseless allegations against the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N).
Talking to The News, he dispelled the impression that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had asked him and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to approach the PPP leadership for reconciliation.
He said Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah was the captain of the team conducting the Karachi Operation, so he could raise the issue in the meeting of Sindh Apex Committee.
“The issue is very simple because all the political parties had unanimously agreed before launching of the Karachi Operation that terrorists, their facilitators and networks that support them would be eliminated at all costs, ignoring all kinds of political pressure,” he said.
To a question, he said the ruling PML-N has not contacted the leadership of PPP after the recent statement of PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari in which he criticised Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, accusing him of restarting the politics of victimisation, which was prevalent in the 1990s.
“Why should we approach them for the statement that was given in the context of the political developments? We don’t want to indulge in unnecessary political debates because there is a need to move forward and work for the betterment of the country,” he said.
The minister said the ruling PML-N would not compromise over the Karachi Operation because it was started to root out terrorism from the mega city.
Replying to another question, he said allegations against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and other leaders of PML-N levelled in the past could not be proved in the court of law. “The people of Pakistan fully know that the PML-N leaders have always worked for the welfare of the people and carried out mega development projects to put the country on the path of progress.”
The minister said Dr Asim Hussain would have the opportunity to prove his innocence and there would be no victimisation of any one at any level during the ongoing Karachi Operation.