Bilawal wants probe into talks with militants, resettlement

PESHAWAR: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Wednesday demanded an inquiry into the negotiations with militants and bringing them back to the country without taking parliament and people into confidence.

Addressing the members of Peshawar High Court Bar Association (PHCBA) here, Bilawal said such elements should be exposed before the nation and held accountable for betraying the martyrs.

PPP provincial president Syed Mohammad Shah Bacha, former deputy speaker of the National Assembly Faisal Karim Kundi, PHCBA President Tariq Afridi, General Secretary Lajbar Khan, Peoples Lawyer Forum provincial head Gohar Rahman Khattak and others were also present.

Bilawal said one wrong decision allowing the militants to resettle in the tribal areas had pushed the country 10 years back.

“The rising acts of terrorism is the result of talks with the militants,” he said, adding that political forces should unite, while judiciary should stop taking dictation from outside.

He maintained the country could not progress as long as such things continued to happen.

After coming to power, he said, the PPP would provide free homes and health facilities to labourers.

He said the Supreme Court was hearing after 12 years the presidential reference seeking to revisit the controversial death sentence awarded to former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

He said the death sentence handed down to Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was a judicial murder and the elements behind it should be exposed and brought to justice.

“Through this reference, we want to make sure no prime minister faces such a situation in future,” he added.

The PPP leader said the reference gave an opportunity to the judiciary to restore its prestige and public trust. “Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was murdered at the behest of a military dictator,” he said, adding that ZA Bhutto had launched the nuclear programme, gave the 1973 Constitution to the country and united the Muslim Ummah.

Condemning the terror attacks in Dera Ismail Khan, Bilawal said talks were held with terrorists when the nation defeated them.

“The people and personnel of law-enforcement agencies made unprecedented sacrifices for peace,” the PPP chairman said.

He added the entire world had acknowledged that Pakistan had broken the back of terrorists and asked why they were allowed to resettle in the country without taking parliament into confidence.

Bilawal maintained that terrorists involved in acts of terrorism were freed from jails. Many terrorists wanted by Pakistan were freed from the jails in Afghanistan when the Afghan Taliban returned to power, he said, adding that no effort was made to prevent them from escaping rather they were allowed to return to Pakistan and were facilitated to settle down in the tribal areas.

Meanwhile, speaking at a convention of women party workers, Bilawal said the PPP would build 3,000,000 homes for destitute people, including women, after coming to power.

He said it was the priority of his party to empower women. The PPP would increase financial assistance to needy families under the Benazir Income Support Programme besides extending interest-free loans to poor women.