- Nawaz directs to expedite progress on NAP; Forces point out several impediments in working; ‘In some way,’ Rangers want authority in Punjab
Top civil and military leadership on Monday discussed major hurdles and impediments hampering swift action against terrorists and their facilitators and abettors, finally resolving to remove those stumbling blocks to ensure swift implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP), Pakistan Today has learnt reliably.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif chaired the high-level meeting here at the PM House. Minister for Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar, Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, National Security Adviser Nasser Khan Janjua, Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, ISI Director General Lt-General Naveed Mukhtar and other civil and military officials also attended the meeting.
An official handout said that the progress and achievements of the Radd-ul-Fasaad (RuF) operation were reviewed during the meeting. “It was reiterated unanimously that elimination of extremism and terrorism are policy imperatives for Pakistan’s security. The prime minister expressed his satisfaction on the progress made by the military and other law enforcement agencies so far,” it said.
A well-placed source told this scribe that the meeting discussed some impediments in way of the swift action against the terrorists in Punjab and Chief Minister Shehbaz was specially invited to the meeting to help evolve a better working relationship between the civilian and the security forces. “The Rangers believe several ‘procedural hurdles’ are proving counterproductive. They want these procedural flaws to be corrected,” the source added.
Though the source did not share details about the procedural flaws but Pakistan Today understands that the paramilitary forces wanted authority to move against terrorists and their facilitators when and if they get classified information. Perhaps, the insistence of the chief minister that the paramilitary forces must seek prior approval from the apex committee before taking action against any suspect is proving ‘counterproductive’ as the terrorists slip while the Rangers seeks approval for action.
The official statement also dropped a hint about these facts too. “Various laws governing the anti-terrorism efforts were also reviewed, and ways and means to make these laws more effective were discussed… The prime minister directed that the pace of implementation should be further expedited,” the statement added. The handout said that the participants of the meeting paid rich tributes to the sacrifices of military and civilian security personnel and people of Pakistan.
“It was emphasised that enemies of peace and development will never be allowed to disrupt the attainment of peace and security across Pakistan. It was decided to further energise efforts on implementation of the National Action Plan and ensure better implementation of NAP by the federal and provincial governments. The recent initiatives on better management of the Pak-Afghan border were also reviewed in detail,” it said.