President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday said criminal elements should be crushed without discrimination and reiterated that elections in the country would be held on time. He said militants and extremists will not be allowed to subvert the electoral process by creating a law and order situation.
The president chaired a meeting to review the law and order situation in Sindh, particularly Karachi, in the wake of recent bomb blasts in the metropolis. He urged the provincial government and relevant agencies to take stern actions to ensure the safety and protection of lives and property of citizens, which he said was the prime responsibility and top priority of the government.
The president ordered Interior Minister Rehman Malik by telephone that security forces should be equipped with proper resources to crackdown criminal elements in society.
Zardari made clear that no leniency should be expressed towards criminals, adding that police officials who were unable to give results be fired from the department.
The meeting was attended among others by Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan, Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, provincial ministers Pir Mazharul Haq, Ayaz Soomro, Agha Siraj Khan Durrani, Syed Murad Ali Shah, Sharjeel Memon, Sindh Chief Secretary Raja Muhammad Abbas and heads of law enforcement agencies.
Spokesperson to the president Senator Farhatullah Babar said the president at the outset of the meeting condemned the barbaric incident at Abbas Town and offered fateha for the departed souls. The president while expressing his sympathies with the bereaved families , gave directions for extending full support and assistance in rehabilitation to the victims of the blasts and providing best medical treatment on government expense to all those affected by the bomb blasts in Abbas Town.
During the meeting, Zardari called upon all political forces and stakeholders to come forward and work hand in hand with law enforcing agencies in Karachi and play their roles to restore peace and stability to the metropolis. He said everyone had to work together and augment government efforts to restore peace in the economic hub of the country.
Earlier, the governor and chief minister briefed the meeting on the latest situation in Sindh, particularly Karachi, and the various steps afoot to maintain law and order.
Later, the president, during a separate meeting with Sindh Assembly Deputy Speaker Shehla Raza, condoled the death of her brother-in-law Akhtar Zaidi and other relatives who lost their lives in the recent Karachi blast.
