K-P Assembly. PHOTO: AFP
PESHAWAR: Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle on Thursday expressed their discontentment over the recent hike in sexual assaults against minors in the province. They decided to introduce a bill in the provincial assembly to make culprits an example for others and to make the law a deterrent against such crimes.
This was suggested during Thursday’s session of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa (K-P) Assembly. The session, which lasted for nearly four hours, was chaired by K-P Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ghani.
On a ‘Call to Attention’ notice, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) member Abdul Salam from Mardan said that almost every day they learn about a new case of violence or sexual assault against minors in the province. He believed that due to the lack of proper legislation, suspects easily secure bail from courts.
Opposition Leader in the K-P Assembly Akram Khan Durrani called for setting up special committees to devise legislation which recommend extreme sentences against such heinous crimes.
At this, Ghani constituted a committee comprising three opposition and three treasury members to look into the matter and present their suggestions in this regard to the house.
“We are looking forward to the provincial government for forming a committee against the prevailing situation in the province, under which special courts could be formed to expedite cases and the accused are made example of for the rest of the society,” he said.
Provincial Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai disclosed that in Mardan, the police have arrested some 200 suspects in the case of a minor being raped and murdered. Similarly, in Abbottabad, he said that the police are approaching the issue with extreme care.
We are also looking to the provincial assembly for introducing legislation which helps put a stop such inhuman practices in society, he asserted.
Govt’s Kashmir policy slammed
During Thursday’s session, the opposition and treasury benches introduced ‘Call to Attention’ notices wherein the asked to discuss the Kashmir issue.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) newly-elected MPA from the tribal districts Naeema Kishwar blamed the incompetence of the ruling PTI and their failed foreign policy for failing to bring the issue to the world’s attention.
“PM Imran Khan became the driver of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman and for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) they removed the bustard hunting ban but due to their incompetence and failed policies, UAE awarded Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi their highest civil award while the Kashmir issue has also been removed from the Makka declaration,” Kishawar said.
She urged the federal government to refrain from approaching the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as India has very strong links with Washington. She added that the government may even have to face the consequences of such a decision.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) member Ahmed Kundi suggested that the attitudes of the federal and provincial governments do not reflect their seriousness on the Kashmir issue.
If the federal government is serious about saving Kashmir, some arrested lawmakers would have been set free to lend their voices on the issue, he said, adding that the foreign policy has failed to deliver positive results.
“Our best and time-tested friend China is annoyed with us for keeping them in the dark on issues relating to security and finance,” Kundi said.
Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) Durrani stated that parliaments across the country are in the dark on prime minister’s strategy on Kashmir.
“We demand an All Parties Conference (APC) on the issue while a parliamentary commission should be formed,” he suggested, adding that many believe the PTI has an agreement with India on Kashmir.
“PTI politicians and workers are living in a fool’s paradise, they billed the meeting with Trump as winning another world cup, but instead they lost an entire territory,” he said, adding that institutions have been crippled due to meddling in their affairs.
Durrani stated that they will not participate in the prime minister’s nationwide protest call on Kashmir. Instead, he said that they have arranged separate rallies on the issue.
Yousafzai, however, urged them to present a united front. “This is not the time to register your political grievances, rather it is time to support the government’s stance and to project a strong voice in the international community that we are on one page for Kashmir.
“We have turned the tabled on India on the diplomatic front as both China and Russia have strongly supported our stance on Kashmir,” Yousafzai claimed, adding that the previous governments did not have a visible policy on Kashmir and blaming everything on the current government is an injustice.
“We need the strength and support of all political parties on the Kashmir issue. And if war starts in the region on Kashmir issue, the entire world will have to suffer,” he said.
Later the house unanimously passed a resolution to condemn Indian actions in Kashmir. It demanded that a voice for Kashmir should be raised in international fora such as the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) and the United Nations (UN).
The House passed a second resolution on setting up a medical care centre in the K-P Assembly.
Earlier, Yousafzai tabled the K-P Food Safety and Halal Food Authority (Amendment) Bill 2019, and two identical K-P Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bills 2019.
Education corruption
The opposition benches also strongly protested against the Adviser to the Chief Minister on Education Ziaullah Bangash for allegedly protecting the mismanagement and poor performance of the department and targeting teachers for their political affiliation.
Durrani said the opposition has plenty of proof of corruption committed in the education department and demanded a meeting with the education secretary to present evidence.
Ghani requested the opposition benches to protest decently. He also directed Bangash to take action against the corrupt elements.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 30th, 2019.
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