Govt not worried about Azadi March: Ijaz

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Interior Brig (retd) Ijaz Shah on Thursday insisted that the government was not worried at all about the Azadi March.

Addressing the media along with PM’s Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan here, the minister said when the marchers reach Islamabad, they will be provided safety and security.

To a question, Ijaz Shah said should he dance to show that the government is not worried. He said he wonders how could he assure the media that the government is not worried. “If they bring more people than expected, we will give them more space. We will make them feel comfortable, as comfortable as staying in a five-star hotel,” he said.

He also added that during negotiations the only point of discussion was the venue of the protest. The marchers, he said, demanded that the government let them enter D-Chowk. “We said that it not possible.” He added the JUI-F will have to abide by the judgments of the Supreme Court judge Qazi Faez Isa and the Islamabad High Court regarding the sit-in. The minister said Fazlur Rehman was allowed to march but he should respect the court decisions too.

Ijaz Shah said the prime minister decided not to prevent the JUI-F from marching since he himself was a politician. He conceded that political statements issued by both the government and the opposition made the atmosphere tense.

The minister said the name of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is not on the exit control list (ECL). He said there will be no politics on health of anyone. To a question, the minister said the resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan was out of the question.

Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said the narrative of opposition was lifeless and baseless. She said the protesters coming to Islamabad should not do anything damaging to the national security and image of Pakistan.

She said the government had the responsibility to provide security to 7,000 members of the diplomatic corps and staff belonging to different embassies and international organisations in Islamabad. She said the United Nations had declared Islamabad a non-family station after the Marriott Hotel bomb attack in 2008. However, she said, due to the efforts of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Islamabad was again declared a family station in 2019. She said the government had no difficulty in political confrontation with the opposition, adding that Maulana Fazlur Rehman had embarked on an adventure which hopefully would end peacefully.

Dr Firdous said the government had accepted the right of the opposition to protest and it would fulfil its commitments in this regard. Meanwhile, Dr Firdous in tweets said it was obvious from day one that the combined opposition was doing politics within its ranks.

She said the strayed and confused approach of the opposition had been seen by all and sundry. She noted the government faced no threat from the opposition; rather the opposition faced threat from the opposition. “Those who can’t speak truth among themselves, how will they speak truth to the nation,” she retorted.