A leader of Tehreek-e-Suba Hazara Party speaks during a demonstration at Fawara Chowk in Abbottabad. PHOTO: ONLINE
Leaders of pro-Hazara political parties have objected to the commission formed to report on the creation of new provinces in the country and demanded a referendum on the issue.
Speaking to the media on Saturday, Hazara Qaumi Mahaz (HQM) Chairman Advocate Qazi Muhammad Azhar, senior leader of Hazara Awami Ittehad Advocate Mushtaq Khan, and Naseer Khan Jadoon of Shuhada-e-Hazara party rejected the formation of the commission and termed it unconstitutional.
They said the commission should have discussed the creation of all the provinces, including Hazara province, instead of only focusing on Bahawalpur in South Punjab.
“This lopsided approach of the so called commission has made it controversial and unconstitutional,” said Qazi Azhar, adding that it has sown the seeds of hatred and bitterness among the people of the country.
Qazi said that the demand for the creation of Hazara province was first raised during the early 1980s by HQM, but despite the many sacrifices of the Hazara people, the rulers denied them of their right of a separate province.
Hazara Awami Ittehad leader Mumtaz Khan criticised Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s leadership for “cheating” the people. “Two years ago, when the movement for a Hazara province was at its peak, the Chaudhrys of Gujarat promised to gift the province to the people. But it never materialised because they struck deals for ministries, rather than for the rights of 10 million Hazaras.”
Meanwhile, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) provincial president for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) also pledged support for the creation of a Hazara province.
Addressing a gathering at the Peshawar Press Club, Anwar Saifullah Khan said a referendum should be held to decide over the creation of the new province, adding that three provinces should also be carved out of Punjab.
Hinting at his desire to head K-P, Saifullah said he and his family have always served the people and the country’s populace has also reposed their trust in them. “Our people need a competent leader and I present a leader who can deliver.”
He said K-P was one of Pakistan’s richest provinces in natural resources. However, these resources could not be fully utilised due to deteriorating law and order, added Saifullah.
WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT BY OUR CORRESPONDENT IN PESHAWAR
Published in The Express Tribune, February 3rd, 2013.
COMMENTS (4)
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@Hazarewal: Your grudge against ANP aside (which i dont think is worthy of comment), how can you justify the demand for Hazara province? The demand is purely on linguistic/ethnic grounds as the movement started after the renaming of the province as pakhtunkhwa. Now ethnically and linguistically the case for hazara province is very weak as pakhtuns are in majority. Kohistan, battagram, Torgahr and most of mansehra and sigificant parts of haripur r pakhtuns. Administratively, the slogan to which baba haider turned later on, there is no logic to carve out a couple of districts from the smallest province of pakistan, when bigger province like sind and baluchistan r ok being one. As regards the slogan of deprivation of hazara, rulers of KP in the past have mostly been from Hazara, and the develpment projects which the current kp govt has undertaken in hazara are unprecedented. Above all, the ANP leaders have repeatedly declared that they would not oppose Hazara province if it is achieved thru constitutional process.
What gives Saifullah right to discuss breakup of Punjab .
If anything Hazara needs to be amalgamated with Punjab rather than stay with ethnocentric KPK
More provinces (a.k.a. more 'admin units') means more admin costs..more corrupt mouths to fill...and all that coming from development funds. Its not the boundaries, its the people (leaders) that will solve problems- so choose wisely!
For the creation of the Hazara as separate province, all the political parties from Hazara in the first instance, need to be united. Then a concerted, coherent, consensual, convergent and unified effort will result in formation of Hazara Province either through the amendments in the constitution by the assemblies or by the referendum. However, 100 percent consensus for a separate Hazara Province exists among all the political parties and the people of the region. This consensus was seen in the from of the rallies in favour of Hazara Provinceby all the political parties all over Pakistan and in general and Hazara in particular. Except the ANP whose unjustified opposition to separate Hazara Province is due to its long-standing hatred and bitterness with the people of Hazara; seen in the form of the killing of more than 10 innocent Hazarewal in 2010 by the ANP government.