Militants want to delay polls: Mian Iftikhar

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain on Friday said the recent rise in terrorism aimed at delaying the upcoming elections.
“First militants are bent upon delaying of polls otherwise they are making best for electing their likeminded people to parliament,” Hussain said this while addressing the oath-taking ceremony of the Swat Press Club (SPC) office-bearers in Peshawar.
SPC President Rashid Iqbal, MPA Sher Shah and MPA Rahmat Ali Khan also addressed the ceremony.
The information minister said that continuation of democratic process was not only essential for curtailing militants and anti-democratic forces. He said that despite hurdles and problems, the government had not only declared war on terror but made a valuable contribution in constitutional reforms. Hussain said that people from all over the country needed to extend support to the democratic forces to ensure on-time general elections. He recalled that ANP leader Bashir Bilour’s assassination was part of a plot aimed at delaying general elections.
Without mentioning name of Jamiat Ulema–e-Islam-Fazl, the information minister said that certain political forces were “staging dramas” in the name of the all parties’ conference. In fact, leaders of such religio-political forces had never denounced violence and terrorism as they were “likeminded of those who are engaged in violence and terrorism in the name of Taliban”. Hussain claimed that the ANP had pioneered the APC on militancy and terrorism. He said the KP had held APCs in 2008 and 2009 as well. As a result of these conferences, the nation became united against militants and terrorists and all political forces had backed military action, he added. He said that now was the time for all political forces to adopt a clear stance on militancy.
Hussain said that since coming into power in March 2008, the ANP adopted a clear stance on terrorism. The ANP had requested the Taliban for dialogue, but response is very negative. The ANP was determined to taking all stakeholders into confidence for return of peace and tranquility in the country, he concluded.