Opp says rulers responsible in case something happens: Govt warns of terrorism

By News report

Ag APP

ISLAMABAD/QUETTA: The Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) have been placed at the highest alert in Balochistan capital Quetta and its suburban’s in the wake of security threats of last week and Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) public meeting in the city being held today (Sunday).

Well-placed sources told The News here Saturday evening that classified information, pertaining to the threat, was made public by the provincial government a day earlier, was based on an information gathered from across the border and it was supposed to be executed in the public meeting of the PDM. The sources reminded that the provincial government of Balochistan had been resisting permission for holding of the PDM public meeting and on the contrary organisers of the public gathering were ignoring the warning, issued by the provincial government, which is one of the allies of the federal government.

The PDM is struggling for ouster of the government and it is holding countrywide public meetings. The Quetta public meeting is third of the slated gatherings. The National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA) has generated the threat alert for Quetta, which is working directly under the federal interior minister. Despite the alerts, issued by the provincial outfits and other information gathering agencies time to time in Balochistan, subversive activities couldn’t be effectively checked, and several people have been perished in different acts of terrorism.

The sources pointed out that in most of the cases of such alert timeframe of the terrorism varied in the terms of happening, but seldom proves to be baseless. The alert that was issued for stalling the PDM public meeting viewed by the authorities concerned as serious and they have taken upon them as challenge to frustrate it. They are confident that no such hazard will come in the way of security arrangements of the public meeting. The provincial government has deployed additional force for warding off any threat.

The sources revealed that as far as Quetta and other parts of Balochistan are concerned, such threats are regular feature and received on daily basis. The administration doesn’t ignore any threat and always takes them seriously. The sources said that the fresh threat is emanated by the groups, which are based across the border in neighbouring country and having direct links with Indian terror sponsoring so-called major intelligence gathering outfit RAW.

The sources pointed out that the organisers of the public meeting are in constant contact with the local administration and extending cooperation in maintaining security situation in and around the public meeting. For the reason the PDM is hopeful that the public meeting will be held without any trouble and in smooth manner.

In the meanwhile, Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) leader and member National Assembly (MNA) Mohsin Dawar, who reached Quetta Saturday afternoon by air, has been detained at the airport since his entry in Quetta city had been prohibited by the district administration.

Talking to this scribe from Quetta Saturday evening, he said that his steps are already on the soil of Quetta city by reaching the airport and practically prevention orders if have been issued, proved non-effective. He wasn’t aware of such ban before traveling to Quetta as it is against the provision of the Constitution and fundamental rights. “I am being denied the opportunity to be among my brothers and have brought a message from the Pashtuns of my area for the people of Balochistan, but unfortunately, administration is frightened without any reason,” he said.

He thanked the people of Quetta for the amount of goodwill that they had been demonstrating for him by placing a sit-in outside the airport for his movement. Mohsin Dawar said that he couldn’t move to the hotel since the authorities had blocked the roads, but he was determined to address the Sunday’s public meeting.

Meanwhile, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz said that now is the best time to join her party as it, along with 11 other parties in the PDM, have “broken the shackles of fear”.

“I feel this is the best time to join PML-N because PML-N and 11 parties in PDM have broken the shackles of fear,” Maryam Nawaz said, while addressing her party workers.

“The truth is that despite being banned, Nawaz Sharif is the only Pakistani personality whose voice is echoing all over Pakistan,” said Maryam. She added that all across the country, the people “can only see the face of one man” who they feel will resolve their problems, reported Geo News on Saturday. She said that Nawaz Sharif had said “some things” in Gujranwala that “should create fear among some people”. “Gujranwala citizens gave a reaction that should be fearful for some people,” she added.

Maryam said that the reaction to Nawaz’s speech was witnessed the same day and the very night the Sindh police chief was “abducted”. “Balochistan’s people can understand the frame of mind of our opponents when Pakistani daughters and sisters’ doors are broken into,” Maryam said, recalling the night of her husband’s arrest in Karachi.

Talking about the arrest, which has become a point of focus in Pakistani politics, Maryam said that during the incident “a man named Imran Khan was missing completely from Pakistani politics and government”.

The PML-N leader also spoke about the disappearance of Geo News journalist Ali Imran, saying that the journalist was “picked up for speaking the truth”. “This has to end one day and that time is close,” said Maryam.

Meanwhile, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is expected to address the Pakistan Democratic Movement public rally in Quetta on Sunday (today) through the video link.

Bilawal is currently running the party’s election campaign in Gilgit-Baltistan and arrangements are being made for his virtual address to the Quetta rally.

Former prime ministers Raja Pervez Ashraf and Yusuf Raza Gilani and PPP Balochistan leaders are expected to address the rally.

In his video message on Saturday, Bilawal had directed the PPP Balochistan workers to participate in the Quetta rally to make it successful, giving a clear message to the ‘selected’ that the people of Balochistan had also rejected them.

Meanwhile, head of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said that public meeting of the PDM will be held at all cost in Quetta today.

He said that government should go home if it cannot provide security for the meeting. While addressing press conference in Kalat JUI chief said that price hike and unemployment had forced people to take to street and this inept government should be shown door. He said that this was illegal and incapable government which had been imposed on us. This government is deaf as it does not hear the pains and shrieks of poor masses, he added.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman said there is no threat in Quetta regarding PDM public meeting and if it has then public meeting will be held whether some leaders should come or not. He said that there was no our private agenda, adding the government had been showing ineptness for last two years. He said that it was the responsibility of the government to tackle any threat in Quetta if it felt it.

Meanwhile, PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal on Saturday said that the rule of law reigns supreme in the United Kingdom and not the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Ahsan Iqbal made the comments in response to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statement that he was willing to go to the United Kingdom if the need arises and speak to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for Nawaz Sharif’s deportation from London.

He said, “The Opposition stands united under the umbrella of the PDM,” he went on to say, adding that after only two jalsas of the 11-party alliance, PM Imran Khan was already talking about elections. Ahsan Iqbal said that the government aims at having PDM’s October 25 rally in Quetta fail under the pretext of security threats.

Meanwhile, Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Saturday said the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) public meeting in Quetta on Sunday would be a flop show and futile exercise against the incumbent government like its Gujranwala and Karachi power shows.

Talking to a private news channel, he said the opposition parties were divided in different groups and they could not achieve anything from its public gatherings. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government would complete its constitutional term, he added.

The minister said the opposition parties were working without any ideology and there was no name of democracy among them. The opposition leaders had gathered under banner of PDM to halt the ongoing accountability against them which was earlier impossible.

He said former prime minister Nawaz Sharif should come back to the country to face the corruption cases as he was convicted and fugitive in many cases.