Those defaming military are against Pakistan, says Naqeebullah's father

Muhammad Khan says he supports presence of armed forces in tribal areas

Muhammad Khan, father of slain South Waziristan youth Naqeebullah Mehsud said on Sunday that those who have been maligning Pakistan Army are in fact against the country.

On January 13 last year, Naqeebullah was killed in a shady encounter carried out by a police team headed by then SSP Malir Rao Anwar in Karachi. Anwar is currently being tried by an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC).

“We support the presence of armed forces in the area (erstwhile FATA) and reject the anti-state slogans,” Muhammad Khan said in a video message released on Sunday.

“This country does not belong to any individual or any group rather it belongs to everyone,” he added.

Khan was responding to the Pashtun Tahfuz Movement's (PTM) diatribe against the state institutions, particularly the armed forces. The leadership of the movement has been accused of being at the payroll of foreign powers by the civil and military leadership of the country.

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Appreciating the Pakistan Army for its sacrifices in restoring peace in the country, Naqebullah’s father urged the PTM leadership to support the military instead of pursuing foreign agenda.

He also warned them against using his son’s name to pursue vested interest and gain political mileage.

Reposing his trust in the state institutions, Khan said, “I fully believe in the courts and judicial system of the country and I appeal all political parties to refrain from using my son’s case for vested interest”.

"No one is allowed to collect funds using my son’s name," he added.

The victim’s father said despite the fact that people in this country do not get justice for several years but his son’s case was moving towards its logical conclusion within a period of one year.