- PA lawmakers pay tribute to late human rights advocate Asma Jahangir
LAHORE: The Punjab government has not yet received any formal information by the Interpol regarding the arrest of Abid “Boxer”, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told the Punjab Assembly (PA) on Friday.
Rana Sanaullah was replying to the Leader of the Opposition Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed who questioned the steps taken by the provincial government in bringing back Boxer, who is a former police inspector of Punjab police and was notorious for conducting extrajudicial killings.
As per the details, Mehmoodur Rasheed, speaking on a point of order criticised the Punjab government stating that the government has failed to bring back the former inspector of Punjab police who had confessed to killing innocent people at the behest of powerful politicians.
“Abid Boxer was involved in extrajudicial killings and fake encounters and therefore a commission must be constituted for a thorough probe,” Rasheed stated.
Rana Sanaullah, responding to the critique, said that the government received the information of Boxer’s arrest through media and that they were still waiting for formal information of his arrest by the Interpol.
“Abid Boxer would be booked before the law in Pakistan once the Punjab government receives the formal information of his arrest through Interpol,” the minister stated.
It is worth mentioning here that Abid Boxer was arrested from Dubai on February 7 by the Interpol. Notorious for extrajudicial killings, kidnappings for ransom, fake encounters and land-grabbing in Lahore, Boxer, who joined the Punjab Police as ASI on the quota reserved for sportsmen, fled to Dubai to avoid his arrest back in 2007.
PA PAYS TRIBUTE TO ASMA JAHANGIR:
The Punjab Assembly also passed a resolution to condole the death of leading lawyer and human rights activist Asma Jahangir while also lauding her services for rule of law and democracy.
“This house of the Punjab Assembly condoles the death of distinguished jurist Asma Jahangir. The deceased was a brave and courageous lawyer, a vibrant social and human rights activist of international repute,” the resolution moved by Rana Sanaullah Khan stated.
Earlier during the assembly proceedings, Local Government and Community Development department Parliamentary Secretary Ramzan Siddique Bhatti failed to give answers to lawmakers questions during the Question-Hour reserved for his department.
Dr Nausheen Hamid of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) raised objections over the conflicting answers submitted by the department as she pointed out that different ststistics of fire stations in Lahore quoted by the department.
Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal also sought clarification from the parliamentary secretary and referred the issue to concerned committee seeking report within a month.
Meanwhile, the treasury could not complete the government business as only one bill ‘The University of Sialkot Bill’ could be introduced in the house and the session was adjourned till Monday due to the collapse of the quorum.
