Conflicting claims about IGP Sindh’s ‘abduction’

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Shibli Faraz on Thursday “strongly rejected” the claim made by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah that he (Shah) had been threatened by a federal minister with the ouster of the Sindh government if an FIR was not registered against the PML-N leader Captain (retd) Safdar for defiling the Quaid-i-Azam Mazar’s sanctity.

“I condemn this lie and strongly reject it,” Faraz, flanked by PM’s Adviser on Accountability and Interior Shahzad Akbar, said at a press conference. “They (the Sindh government) are mentally distressed by the (lukewarm) response they saw in their rallies,” said Faraz, adding that the Sindh government was trying to hide its “incompetence and corruption” through the arrest saga.

“The video footage of the incident shows Safdar sitting in the police car very comfortably,” the minister said, highlighting that it was ‘evident’ that there was no element of force in the arrest.

He added that even if force was involved, the Sindh government should be held responsible for it. On the other hand, adviser to PM Shahzad Akbar termed the opposition the “IG of liars”, claiming that the PTI workers had only been involved in the filing of an application for an FIR and not in the arrest.

Shahzad Akbar, while presenting the “facts” as per the “timeline” of the case, noted: "A few days ago, there had been a ruckus at the Mazar-i-Quaid. “First, there was a ruckus. After the ruckus, some people from Karachi, including PTI workers, gave an application at a police station to file an FIR,” Shahzad Akbar said.

The adviser explained that under the established procedure, police take an application and then report it. He added that police officials then form an opinion, take a legal view and thereafter register an FIR.

“PTI’s total role in all this was that we gave an application. The laws that were (allegedly) violated were written down and a written application was given that action should be taken,” said the adviser.

The PM’s aide said that after this process, “everyone’s role finished” and the role of the Sindh government started. “After we woke up in the morning, we saw that an FIR had been registered at night and Safdar Awan was arrested,” Shahzad Akbar claimed. He also added that the claims of police breaking into the hotel room still need to be investigated.

“The thing that came forward in camera footage wasthat Safdar Awan was seen leaving the hotel in the front seat of a Sindh Police vehicle,” Akbar said. He reiterated that it was clearly Sindh Police that arrested the PML-N leader.

Shahzad Akbar also said he disagreed with the arrest, saying there was no point for it as Captain (R) Safdar's crime was a bailable offence. “Everyone knows where Sindh Police gets its directives from,” Shahzad Akbar said.

He also added that the Sindh CM should disclose which federal minister called him and threatened to end his government. Meanwhile, former prime minister and senior PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi alleged that Prime Minister Imran Khan gave instructions for registration of a case against Capt (R) Safdar and the use of two federal government institutions for the purpose.

Addressing a press conference here, he said two federal government institutions – Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Pakistan Rangers – were used for kidnap of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh and registration of an FIR against Captain Safdar in Karachi.

Flanked by party’s secretary general Ahsan Iqbal, the former premier said that both the ISI and Pakistan Rangers report to the prime minister and take command from him while in both institutions, the officers are appointed from Pakistan Army on deputation.

“Somebody instructed the two institutions and that person was no one else but the prime minister himself,” he alleged. Abbasi alleged the PM used the two institutions to breach the sanctity of ‘Chadar and Chardewari’. “The questions arise here whether officers of these two institutions should have obeyed unlawful command or not,” he added.

He said that not only the Constitution was violated, but the authority of the province was also challenged and the prime minister was responsible for the whole situation. “The PM not only acted against his own oath, but also asked officers of two institutions to do so,” he alleged.

The PML-N leader further alleged that the IGP Sindh was kidnapped by personnel of ISI between 2am to 4am and was taken to their local office while Pakistan Rangers people surrounded the hotel and broke into the room of Safdar and Maryam Nawaz to arrest the former. “This is a matter of fact that two institutions of the federal government directly attacked a province,” he alleged.

Shahid Khaqan said the PM, while taking notice of the incident, should have contacted the Sindh chief minister, but it did not happen.

Then, he said, the PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari appealed to Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) to take notice of the incident. “The Army chief promised to hold an inquiry within 10 days and after that the Sindh police officers also deferred their protest for 10 days,” he said.

Abbasi said the Army chief, as per Army Act, could investigate only if any lawful or unlawful command was obeyed or disobeyed.

“It is a matter of concern that two institutions were given orders to break into the room of Safdar and Maryam Nawaz,” he alleged. “The PM will have to be answerable as to why the ISI and Pakistan Rangers were used,” he said.

He said they were expecting that the judiciary would also take notice of kidnapping of most senior officer of Sindh Police, while a committee of Senate should also be constituted. “But not only the Parliament is paralysed, but courts are also silent,” he said. He pointed out that in the past, the superior judiciary had been taking suo motu notices of transfer of senior officers.

The PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal said the government recently gave super NRO (concession) to Kulbhushan Jadhav by bulldozing a bill specific to him at a meeting of the Senate standing committee on the law. “The committee passed a bill specific to the Indian terrorist to give him right of appeal,” he said.

Ahsan said the government had played havoc with the national economy while masses have been burdened with the price-hike. “But the only major issue facing Imran Khan is that how to frame fake cases against the PML-N leadership,” he said.

The PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said in a series of tweets that Prime Minister Imran Khan must resign after emergence of video of attack on the room of Maryam Nawaz. She said the footage is an undeniable proof of political vengeance by the premier. She said the names of the people involved in the whole incident must be made public.

Meanwhile, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said on Twitter that the talk of Chadar and Chardewari on Captain Safdar’s arrest is a joke by the people involved in the Model Town tragedy. He said the worst incident of violation of Chadar and Chardewari happened at Model Town where innocent people, including pregnant women, were targeted by police.