- Interior minister says PTI chief was part of committee which drafted elections bill
In an apparent attempt of face-saving, Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said that the government ordered to disperse Faizabad protestors in order to prevent any sectarian unrest in the country.
The minister claimed that the Faizabad protest was part of a conspiracy to stir sectarian unrest in the country rather than being related to upholding the finality of the prophethood. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, he went on to say that Pakistan’s constitution was very clear on the oath relating to the finality of Prophethood, adding that sectarian unrest needed to be avoided in the country at all costs.
Ahsan Iqbal further stated, “All stakeholders, including the civil and the military, played their role in containing the situation and the authorities eventually overcame it.” He reiterated that some of the protesters were armed and had reacted violently to police.
The minister appealed the nation to work towards religious harmony, especially during the current month of Rabiul Awwal.
Hitting back at Imran Khan who earlier criticised the government for mishandling the situation arising out of the protest, and working to save deposed premier Nawaz Sharif from accountability, Iqbal said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief wouldn’t be able to become prime minister even if the entire cabinet resigned.
“We don’t want endorsements from Imran Khan but from 200 million people of this country,” he said and added that Pakistan is on the path to progress and will make its way to the top 20 economies by 2030.
He also said that Imran Khan and members of his PTI were also members of the committee which drafted the constitutional amendment in the Elections (2017) Act. “Imran was a part of the 34-member committee which drafted the law and four members of his party were part of it too,” said Iqbal.
“Awami Muslim League leader Sheikh Rashid was also part of the committee which drafted the bill,” the minister said, adding that all members of the committee gave different suggestions but PTI members, as per the Senate record, did not make any demands to revert the Khatm-e-Nabuwwat clause back to its original form.
“The reality is that all the corrupt politicians are now under the umbrella of PTI,” the interior minister said. He insisted that the situation in Pakistan demands that the nation maintains enduring peace in the country and deny anyone the chance to spread strife in the country.
“Unfortunately, we are becoming part of the enemy’s agenda to make Muslims of Pakistan fight against each other,” he said and added that a conspiracy is being hatched to make Muslims fight against Muslims.
Referring to the media blackout during the Faizabad operation, the interior minister said that the ruling party was forced to impose a restriction on the media during the operation carried out against protesters of a religious party. “No one is a bigger champion of freedom of expression than Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N),” Iqbal said.
“The unfortunate step of blocking channels was according to Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (PEMRA) code of conduct which forbids live coverage of security operations,” Ahsan Iqbal informed.
Responding to a question, he said that the government had also called a meeting with the Pakistan Broadcasting Association (PBA) the very next day after media restrictions were imposed, but due to traffic blockages in Karachi, most members could not attend the session.
