Rangers will stay in Sindh at all costs: Nisar

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Thursday categorically said the Rangers will stay in Sindh till complete restoration of law and order and the federal government will give a legal cover to their stay in the province.

Nisar talked to the DG Sindh Rangers Major General Bilal Akbar over the phone and expressed his reservations about the deliberate hindrances being created in the Rangers operation for political mileage.

He also directed the DG Rangers to call back his men detailed for the security of VIPs.The minister said if the Sindh government did not send a summary to the federal government seeking an extension in the Rangers stay in the province, then their presence will be given legal protection in accordance with the directions of the Supreme Court.

Nisar praised the Rangers and said they were playing an important role in maintenance of law and order in Karachi despite facing difficulties in acquisition of extra policing powers.He assured Gen Bilal Akbar that the federal government will ensure the Rangers’ presence in Sindh in accordance with the Constitution.

The minister said Karachi and Sindh will be assisted with legal protection and expressed the hope that the Sindh government will also fulfill its responsibilities in this regard.

Nisar said he would also call the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and try to address his reservations on the extension in the powers of the paramilitary force.“How can the Rangers perform their due role without powers?” he asked during his telephonic conversation with the DG Rangers.