Kidnapping incidents dominate debate in Sindh Assembly

GDA MPA cites recent cases saying such crimes are on the rise; energy minister denies claim

KARACHI: Incidents of kidnapping for ransom dominated the discussion during the Sindh Assembly session on Monday as Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) MPA Nand Kumar Goklani cried foul over a recent incident. "Tamil Das Meghwar has been killed after he was kidnapped from Jhol Sanghar. What steps has the government taken to arrest his killers?" he asked. Goklani was overcome by emotion as he moved the call-attention notice.

"Earlier, it was Hindus who were frequent targets of criminals, now Muslims are being targeted. Kidnapping incidents are increasing with each passing day," he said while referring to another recent incident, the kidnapping of folk singer, Jigar Jala, from Shikarpur two days ago.

Sindh Energy Minister Imtiaz Shaikh refuted the claim that kidnapping incidents were on the rise. "There are some cases. We have recently recovered three hostages from Shikarpur," he said, adding that such incidents occur in the United States of America and other parts of the world too. Referring to Jigar Jala's kidnapping, Shaikh said that some people had called him for a musical programme and were holding him hostage. "We are looking into the issue," he said while stating that he had spoken to the Shikarpur SSP and the folk singer would be released soon.

Meanwhile, the Sindh Assembly passed a resolution felicitating Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani on becoming the longest-serving speaker of the assembly since the independence of Pakistan.

The resolution was jointly moved by GDA MPA Arif Mustafa Jatoi and Pakistan Peoples Party MPA Mukesh Kumar Chawla. Other MPAs of various political parties also congratulated Durrani.

Durrani, who is in the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) but is requisitioned by the assembly for sessions, thanked the lawmakers for lauding his services. "Whether one likes me or not, I have served as the custodian of this house for longer than anyone in Pakistan. I am proud to be the speaker of this house," said Durrani. "I am the third person from my family who has chaired the session. This has also never happened in Pakistan's history," he added.

Later, the speaker adjourned the session till today (Tuesday).

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20^th, 2019.