Govt urged to make serious efforts for Dr Aafia Siddiqui’s release

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq on Sunday demanded of the government to make serious efforts for the release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui — a Pakistani scientist languishing in a United States prison after being convicted in a controversial case.

The JI supremo prayed for the departure soul and paid a rich tribute to Asmat Siddiqui — the late mother of Siddiqui. He said Asmat Siddiqui was a very brave women and she waited for her daughter to be repatriated for over 19 years.

He said the government didn’t make arrangements for a contact between Asmat Siddiqui and Dr Aafia despite very clear court orders in this regard. Haq said Dr Aafia was arrested illegally during the tenure of Pervez Musharraf, while the later ruling regimes had declared her the daughter of the nation. He said all political parties made claims and expressed solidarity with the family but did nothing for her release when the party came to power. He said the JI had always struggled for the release of Dr Aafia.