Fazl to resist change in Economic Corridor route

DERA ISMIAL KHAN: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday expressed reservations over the change in the route of the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor.
Talking to reporters in his native Abdulkhel village after a public meeting, the JUI-F chief said the original route passes through southern district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Dera Ismail Khan and Zhob district in Balochistan.
Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the original route was the shortest as the change would increase more than 1000 kilometers distance. “It will also address the sense of grievance of the people of the smaller province and will bring them into national mainstream,” he claimed.
He said the federal government had not informed his party of the changes in the route and expressed the hope that the government would not change the profitable route.The JUI-F chief said he would visit China to take up the issue with the Chinese authorities. “New gas reserves have been discovered in Dera Ismail Khan which is the largest in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” he said, claiming that Pak-China Economic Corridor would benefit from it.
He said his party would appreciate and support good actions of the government while oppose those which were not in the national interests. “We supported the government when anti-government protests were staged in Islamabad and openly opposed the 21st amendment in the Constitution,” he added.
The JUI-F chief said his party was against linking terrorism with religion. He asked the government to make laws to eliminate all forms of terrorism. Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the government can deceive Pakistanis but not the international community. “The government should take tangible steps if it wants international community to support its policies,” he argued. On the occasion, Pir of Taunsa Sharif Khwaja Attaullah announced his support to JUI-F on 21st amendment to the Constitution.