Balochistan MPAs for reopening ZAB murder case

‘Those involved must be punished so that no one would dare attack democracy’.

QUETTA:

Members of the Balochistan Assembly have put their weight behind President Asif Ali Zardari’s decision to reopen the murder case of former Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

In the session on Friday, chaired by Speaker Aslam Bhootani, members unanimously adopted a resolution put forth by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) parliamentary leader Sadiq Umrani.

Terming it extra-judicial killing, Umrani said that those involved must be taken to task so that in the future, no one would ‘dare’ attack democracy.

The house also unanimously passed another resolution, moved by Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s (PML-Q) Jaffar Mandokhel, demanding that the provincial government approach the federal government for the laying down of two new 220KV transmission lines, which would go from Dera Ismail Khan to Zhob and from Uch Power Plant to Quetta.

“Since power pylons of high transmission lines are routinely attacked in the Baloch belt, it is requested that new lines be laid down in the Pashtun belt which is secure and will be protected by locals,” he told the house.

MPA Zahoor Buledi said that the Pakistani government should accept the Iranian government’s offer to provide electricity. “The requirement of the Makran belt has increased from 36 to 70 megawatts and the Iranian government had recently offered to renew its agreement but the Pakistani government did not pay any attention to it,” he said.

The resolution was unanimously approved by the Balochistan Assembly and the members also said that they will constitute a committee under the leadership of the chief minister to hold a meeting with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 2^nd,  2011.