Pervaiz Rashid should have told Almeida ‘not to run false story’: Nisar

There is a consensus on 'non-state actors'; high-powered committee will probe ‘Dawn leaks’, says interior...

Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid should have stopped the 'false' Dawn report regarding a high-level security meeting from being published, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has said.

“Pervez Rashid should have told the journalist concerned that the story is incorrect, and should not be published in national interest… upon resistance he could have asked the editor of the newspaper, Zafar Abbas, not to run the story,” Nisar told reporters on Sunday.

Buckling under relentless pressure, the government on Saturday sent its information minister packing after preliminary investigations established a ‘lapse’ on his part.

Information minister steps down after being identified as leak in ‘planted’ story

The interior minister termed the events quoted in the story, i.e. a dispute between Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, and the ISI chief over action against ‘non-state actors’, as absolutely baseless. “There has always been a consensus between the civil-military leadership on non-state actors,” he upheld.

Nisar said the decision to remove the information minister was taken after initial findings into the matter, with the army being taken into confidence. A complete inquiry is till pending, added the minister.

"A high power committee will probe 'Dawn leaks' and those responsible will be exposed. No one should attempt to hide behind the right to information act and the right to protect sources… This is a matter of national security," Nisar said, suggesting Almeida will be questioned by the inquiry committee.

"It will be a full-fledged (investigation) committee as it is a huge task that intelligence agencies alone cannot do," he said.

"Tomorrow names for the committee will be decided in a meeting with the Prime Minister and this task will be completed as soon as possible."

The leak was false news which "has compromised our national narrative (against terrorism)", added Nisar.

The minister said he was assured by representatives of Dawn that Almeida will be available for questioning. “Else, the law will take its course.”

Rashid’s sacking came barely 48 hours after an unusual meeting of senior government functionaries with army chief General Raheel Sharif at the Army House. The government refuted the story as ‘false and fabricated’ not once, not twice but thrice. The repeated denials, however, failed to satisfy the military which called for unmasking those who had planted the story.

‘PTI’s Islamabad lockdown is a crime against state’

Regarding Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf (PTI)’s planned protest in Islamabad on November 2, Nisar said the party intended to lock down the federal capital. “What sort of message will this send out to the world if the capital of a nuclear power is locked down,” he questioned. “This would be a crime not just against the government but a crime against the state,” Nisar added.



“It is incumbent upon me to ensure that the lives of the dwellers of Islamabad are not disturbed; children should be able to go to schools, patients should be able to reach hospitals and courts should conduct proceedings,” he maintained. The interior minister said he then established backdoor contacts to ensure that the capital is not closed down. “All institutions of the country will continue to work.”

Nisar recalled that Islamabad was closed for four long months because of the 2014 sit-in. The protesters are planning to intrude into Pakistan Secretariat this time, he said, questioning how a mob of 12,000 people from a province can run over the capital and destroy everything.

Nisar said the government intended to keep everything up and running. "Why does the PTI want to shutdown Islamabad when the Supreme Court has started proceedings in the matter?"

Imran Khan reacts

Reacting to the interior minister’s press conference, Imran Khan said there was a dire need to find out all those responsible behind the security leak. “Pervaiz Rashid cannot be so innocent to just forward a story without asking anyone about it,” he said.

“There is a need to find out if Rashid was all alone in his act or was backed by some people of the Sharif family',” PTI chairman said. “The security leaks put forth a stance similar to Narendra Modi’s rhetoric against Pakistan in order to please the Indo-Israel lobby,” he added.