Former law minister to take oath of office today
After having been cleared by a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) digging into the Model Town massacre in which at least 14 Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) activists were shot and killed by police, Rana Sanaullah is all set to resume his office at Punjab Law Ministry today (Friday).
According to an official statement, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) stalwart will take oath as minister for law.
On the pretext of removing illegal security barriers placed around the building, a large contingent of riot police had raided Dr Tahirul Qadri’s Minhaj-ul-Quran International’s Lahore secretariat, which also houses PAT headquarter, on June 17, 2014. Dr Qadri’s followers, who were preparing to launch an anti-government movement on 23 June 2014, started protesting against the crackdown giving rise to deadly clashes.
At least 14 protestors, including three women, were killed and dozens others got seriously wounded after police opened indiscriminate fire on them. The then law minister, Rana Sanaullah, known as the de facto chief minister, justified the police action as legal at the top of his lungs.
Political observers say that instead of admitting his failure, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had made Sanaullah a scapegoat to save his face. Shahbaz sacked Sanaullah as law minister and Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Dr Tauqir Shah. While the former waited for clearance from the JIT, the latter was appointed Pakistan’s representative to the World Trade Organisation despite an enquiry being conducted against him.
However, Qadri and other opposition leaders, including PTI chief Imran Khan had held Shahbaz Sharif responsible for the civilian deaths at the hands of police and demanded his resignation. The First Information Report (FIR) of Model Town tragedy was registered against key figures of the government including the prime minister, the CM and law minister of Punjab.
A JIT, formed to investigate the case, after almost year long probe gave Sanaullah and others a clean chit the other day.
JIT is not different from those corrupt political and military elite of Pakistan they all are same for killing and looting.
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