Nawaz, Shehbaz would have to face justice for Model Town massacre, says Qadri

Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri on Saturday while talking with reference to the June 2014 killing of 14 PAT workers during a clash with police in Lahore, he said Nawaz and Shahbaz would have to face justice.

While addressing a rally in Rawalpindi Qadri said that the rulers must think what will happen if PAT ask them to besiege their family residence in Raiwand

“I don’t want to tell my workers to take the law into their hands. But I also cannot forsake justice,” he added.

“We are not begging for justice. We know how to get justice and Qisas. We can get justice within seven days,” he said.

Addressing the army chief, he said: “You’re nearing retirement, what will become of your promise? You can ensure justice for the victims and their orphans. If you leave office without fulfilling this promise, how will you be able to face the Maker?”

Qadri said his workers and the Model Town victims’ families could not be bought. He said even his minor security guards could not be bought even if they were offered billions of rupees.

He said there are three phases of his Qisas movement. “Today is the last day of the first round of the movement which started in July,” he said.

He further alleged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as an Indian agent, who is working on the ‘enemy’s agenda’ to destroy Pakistan.

“The rulers are allies of the enemy nations and terrorists. If their rule doesn’t come to an end, they would devour every institution including Pakistan Army and Pakistan’s nuclear programme,” Dr Qadri said,

Qadri claimed that in the manufacturing units of the Sharifs, there were over 300 Indians, many of whom could be Indian agents. “These agents move freely between the two countries, thanks to the influence of the ruling family. Even the phone calls of the Indian agent Kulbhushan Yadav were traced from Ramzan Sugar Mills,” he said.

He also alleged that India invested heavily to bring Nawaz to power and now it is fighting a war to protect his rule. “Whenever the Sharifs rule comes under threat, some terror incident takes place,” he said.

Qadri also alleged that the rulers were trying to monopolise the energy sector with the help of secret Indian investment. Waving certain documents in front of the camera, he said he was ready to offer documentary proof against the Sharifs to any intelligence agency.

Referring to Mehmood Khan Achakzai, an ally of the present government, he alleged that Achakzai is on the payroll of a secret agency of a neighbouring state. He presented an official document of Interior Ministry, allegedly showing that Achakzai received millions of rupees from that country.

Qadri said now it was the responsibility of every citizen “from General Raheel to the common man” to protect this integrity of the country. “Now let’s see who comes forward to protect the country,” he added.

When asked about the FBR notices to persons named in the Panama Papers leaks, he said the FBR was “a helpless organisation”, adding that those who were charged with dispatching these notices were themselves named in the leaks. It was not clear who he was referring to, though some believed this to be an oblique reference to the FBR chairman.

He said that the ruling elite would have to answer for the wealth they had plundered and transferred abroad.

Addressing the gathering at Rehmanabad before Dr Qadri’s keynote address, Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed delivered a charged speech in his signature colloquial style, challenging the administration to remove the containers around Lal Haveli. “Otherwise, I’ll march on Islamabad, even if Dr Tahirul Qadri doesn’t!”

“Imran Khan is leading an Ehtesab rally, Dr Qadri is holding his Qisas rally, while ours is a small ‘Nejat’ (riddance) rally,” he mused.

Addressing the PM directly, Sheikh Rashid said: “I didn’t enter politics holding Gen Jilani’s hand” — a reference to the one-time governor of Punjab under Gen Zia.

“Don’t look to the army; Pakistan does not face external threats, all the threats are inside our borders,” he said.

He also addressed the army chief, saying: “If you can hold Gen [Obaidullah] Khattak accountable, then it is also your responsibility to ensure that Tahirul Qadri gets justice for the Model Town tragedy.”

He challenged Nawaz Sharif to come and contest elections in his constituency in Rawalpindi. “Your era is coming to an end but my age is going to begin,” he said.