Law minister urges lawyers to await investigation findings into the attack. PHOTO: FILE
Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and Leader of the Opposition Khursheed Shah faced off in the assembly session on Monday amidst a bout of intense sloganeering by members of the ruling and opposition parties.
The confrontation came during an hour-long debate over how Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad was stopped from taking a Canada-bound flight last week following instructions from US officials to airline and airport staff.
PkMAP leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai attempted to calm the two leaders down but when both refused to shake hands, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq adjourned the proceedings.
On March 21, Rasheed was off-loaded from a PIA flight when he was en route to Toronto. Rasheed moved a privilege motion on Monday, demanding a special committee probe the incident. While the speaker refused, Chaudhry Nisar assured Rasheed that the matter would be dealt with as a special case.
Opposition leader Khursheed Shah termed the matter a ‘stigma on national integrity and dignity’. “Why has the government obeyed the orders of a US officer?” he asked, saying, “An elected member was insulted and off-loaded from a national flag carrier on the orders of an American officer – why has the government not lodged a protest?”
PTI’s Shah Mahmood Quraishi remarked that ‘the government should take a clear stance on the issue’. The former foreign minister said, “I remember how Americans were concerned about the issue of visa delays and they always made a talking point of such incidents at the highest level.”
Chaudhry Nisar said the government has consented to refer the issue to a privilege committee. “I can present the agreement which was inked between the PPP government and the US due to which Imran Khan and Sheikh Rasheed were off-loaded,” he retorted, referring to an incident when the PTI chief was off-loaded from a US-bound flight to Toronto and questioned by theUS authorities.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 25th, 2014.
COMMENTS (4)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
1730379446-0/WhatsApp-Image-2024-10-31-at-17-56-13-(1)1730379446-0-270x192.webp "european aviation safety agency lifts ban on pia khawaja asif")
What nonsense, he was going to canada not US, and unlike US, Canadians don't ask to offload, if they have given visa. Regardless of deals,why anyone be offloaded on request of US when they are not even going to US. He was going to canada!! And had a Visa!! There is more to it, PML N has to give a better excuse.
If this would have had happened with citizen of any other country, then the government of that country would have had taken strong action. But alas, the Pakistani government does not care about the dignity of our own people and we expect others to give us respect.
He has himself said that he set up training camps for terrorists to fight in Indian Kashmir. He shared podium with other terrorists and banned persons like, Hafiz Saeed and Hamid Gul in DPC rallies. He openly asked the Chief Justice to kill Zardari, the then President of Pakistan. Just wait and see. After US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Imran Khan will also be banned from visiting USA and Canada for his ties to the terrorists and leaders of DPC.
Why is it a big deal.... US did not give him a travel approval to be in their country - what has PIA or Government got to do with it - they should have kept him on the plane and let it sit at the airport!!