LAHORE:Provincial Minister for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Social Welfare Raja Basharat has said that the Punjab government would end the fake cases registered against farmers during the protest against Nawaz Sharif as farmers are the backbone of Pakistan economy and protecting their interests is one of the top priorities of the present government.
He expressed these views in a meeting with a delegation of Pakistan Kissan Ittehad at Civil Secretariat on Wednesday. Provincial Minister for Population Welfare Col (Retd) Hashim Dogar was also present. The delegation led by PKI Central Coordinator Malik Zulfiqar Awan presented major issues of the farmer community in the meeting.
The law minister called a meeting on August 25 to review their legality and eliminate the false cases against farmers. He listened carefully to the remaining demands of the delegation and said that work was in full swing on the plan of special markets to sell their produce directly to the consumers. The Punjab government will recommend to the federal government to resolve the issues faced by the farmers related to the federal government, the Punjab law minister said. He said he would convey the concerns of the farmers to the federal government on the subsidy given by the government to the agro-pharmaceutical companies while concrete steps were being taken to curb the business of fake agro-chemicals. He assured the farmers that he would personally recommend to the Punjab chief minister to solve the issues of the farmers on a priority basis.
Meanwhile, the eighth review meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Law and Order was held at Civil Secretariat in which the district administration officers gave a briefing on the steps taken for Muharram security in Dera Ghazi Khan division.
The scholars of the DG Khan division and members of the district peace committees were also consulted. Provincial Minister for Law Raja Bashar Provincial Minister for Population Hashim Dogar, Punjab Chief Secretary Jawad Rafique Malik, inspector general of police Punjab and other officers were present in the meeting. Provincial ministers Mohsin Leghari, Hasnain Dareshk, local parliamentarians, DG Khan division commissioner, RPO, deputy commissioners, DPOs and Ulema participated in the meeting through video link.
Raja Basharat said that during Muharram, the cabinet committee and the nominated ministers would also visit and monitor the security situation in Punjab. He thanked the scholars of all schools of thought for always supporting the government in maintaining peace. The law minister said, “This government does not belong to a particular sect so it is our duty to protect the life and property of every citizen. Due to Covid 19 we are facing specific challenges so corona SOPs must be implemented in processions and gatherings.”
He said that the concerns of the scholars regarding objectionable content on social media were being addressed. He directed that all the institutions, including the municipal committees, should discharge their duties diligently. The scholars said that the efforts of Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar, Law Minister Raja Basharat, Pakistan Army and police in maintaining law and order were commendable.
They said the scholars of all schools of thought would stand on the front foot with the government in all circumstances. "If there is a petty issue between the scholars, they would solve it together,” they said. The Shia Ulema stressed their fellows to wear face masks, observe social distancing and use sanitizer at processions and gatherings.
The chief secretary said that the number of corona cases in the developed countries of the world was increasing again, so be very careful.