Punjab governor dispels martial law rumours

Says government committed to dialogue with opposition

LAHORE: Punjab Governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar has said there is no threat of martial law in the country. “The future of Pakistan is intertwined with stable democracy,” he stressed.

Speaking to the media after attending the three-day annual Urs celebrations of Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh on Sunday, Sarwar said some people are criticising the government by saying that it does not believe in dialogue. However, when the government decided to hold dialogue with the opposition, critics said they were afraid of PML-N’s protest.

The government, he underlined, is not afraid of any protest, but believes in consultation with the opposition for greater national interest. “The timing of the opposition’s protest is not right. After hectic diplomatic efforts, the government has brought the Kashmir issue on the international agenda.

He said any opposition protest would be an attempt to sabotage these efforts. “India has crippled routine life of eight million people in the occupied valley by imposing curfew for the past 74 days,” he highlighted.

The governor said the government would provide all possible facilities to opposition parties if they would stage a peaceful protest. He pointed out that opposition is divided over the protest call of Jamiat Ulema Islam-F (JUI-F), but most parties have announced support and participation in the opposition’s rally to achieve their political interests.

However, they should keep in mind that Prime Minister Imran Khan would not step down because he had been elected for five years, he maintained.

Sarwar said India is committing human rights' violations and brutalities in occupied Kashmir besides violating the ceasefire at the Line of Control (LoC). India wanted to create unrest in Pakistan, but why the opposition wanted to create instability and unrest by staging protest. No one wanted to create instability in the country at this time that was why the people have rejected opposition's agenda.

To a question, Sarwar said that the government has focused its all attention towards Kashmir issue and it was also striving to expose Indian atrocities before the world.

He suggested that the opposition should stage protests against Indian atrocities, not against the government.

Answering another question, Sarwar warned it was responsibility of the government to take action against those who would violate the law, adding that supremacy of constitution and rule of law would be ensured at any cost.

Speaking about the Kartarpur Corridor, he said the project would be inaugurated next month as arrangements for the 550th birth Anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak Devji are being finalised. He said the government would ensure all facilities at religious places in the country to promote religious tourism.

Meanwhile, the JUI-F has canceled a meeting with government committee which was scheduled for Sunday to discuss the anti-government march. The party representative has said that Rahbar Committee of the opposition will take a final decision regarding negotiation with the incumbent government.

Earlier, first formal contact between the government and JUI-F leaders was developed after Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjarani telephoned Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haidri and decided to meet on October 20 for thorough discussion on anti-government march. JUI-F's Haidri had confirmed the contact, and said doors for talks were never closed, however, final decision about the protest would be taken by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 21^st, 2019.