Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said that our survival was in the elimination of terrorism and the whole nation was united to achieve this objective whereas the NAP was a guarantee to peace in the country.
He was presiding over a meeting of Provincial Apex Committee, here. National Security Adviser Gen (retd) Nasir Janjua, Lahore Corps Commander Lt-Gen Sadiq Ali, Rangers Punjab DG Maj-Gen Umar Farooque Barki, 10 Division General Officer Commanding Maj-Gen Sardar Tariq Aman, Punjab Chief Secretary Capt (retd) Zahid Saeed, Punjab IGP Mushtaq Ahmed Sukhera, Home Secretary Azam Suleman Khan, National Security Division Secretary Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui and senior military and civil officers attended the meeting.
The CM said that the decisions of military and civilian leadership have yielded positive results and incidences of terrorism and sectarianism have decreased considerably due to the steps taken under NAP, he added. He said that the world also acknowledged the sacrifices rendered by the country in the war against terrorism and supreme sacrifices of Pakistan were being appreciated throughout the world. He said brave Pak Army has defeated the terrorists through the most successful military operation in the world history Zarb-e-Azb and those destroying the peace of Pakistan have themselves been destroyed.
‘We are fighting the war against terrorism through unity, solidarity and harmony and winning the war against terrorism. Shehbaz Sharif expressed the hope that Pakistan would achieve the victory and the country would be purged of menace of terrorism, extremism, militancy and sectarianism forever. He said NAP has been fully implemented in the province and a number of important steps have been taken in this regard which have yielded substantial results.
The progress on the steps being taken to eliminate terrorism, extremism and sectarianism in the province under National Action Plan (NAP) was reviewed in detail in four-hour long meeting. The meeting expressed satisfaction over the steps taken under NAP and it was resolved that efforts would be continued to uproot terrorism, extremism and sectarianism from the province.
The meeting also appreciated successful operations carried out by Punjab government and law enforcement agencies against terrorists and their facilitators. The meeting paid tributes to the sacrifices rendered by the officers and jawans of Pak Army, officers and officials of Punjab Police and other departments. The meeting agreed to take more coordinated and effective steps for the elimination of terrorism, extremism and sectarianism under NAP.
The meeting decided to launch crackdown without any discrimination against those providing financial support to the terrorists and their facilitators and close down all sources of financial aid to them. The meeting decided that zero-tolerance policy would be implemented against those involved in printing and distribution of literature based on religious hatred and implementation of law of ban on provocative speeches would also be ensured. Similarly, violation of Amplifier Act would not be tolerated at all and strict action would be taken against those involved in spreading terrorism, extremism, and sectarianism on social media. The meeting decided to make strict monitoring of entry and exit points of the province.
Earlier, Lahore Corps Commander Lt-Gen Sadiq Ali met Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. Matters of mutual interest and steps being taken in connection with NAP were discussed during the meeting.
