Benazir Memorial: Hearing adjourned until late January

Punjab government asked whether the marked land falls in its jurisdiction.

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday adjourned until the third week of January hearing of a petition challenging construction of a Benazir Bhutto memorial in Liaquat Bagh, Rawalpindi.

The petition was filed by a lawyer, Feroz Shah Gillani, against the construction of the monument which is expected to cost the national exchequer Rs1 billion.

During a previous hearing, the court had sought a reply from the Punjab government on whether the earmarked site falls in the territorial jurisdiction of the province.

Earlier, a deputy attorney general, Naveed Inayat Malik, had submitted, on behalf of the federal government, that Bhutto was a national hero who had embraced martyrdom during her struggle for democracy “That is why a memorial is being built at the place where she was martyred with money from the national kitty,” submitted the deputy attorney general.

The petitioner’s counsel had submitted that Benazir Bhutto was a leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and not a national hero.

He had argued that if PPP wanted to build a monument for its slain leader, the party should take the money out of  its own funds and not the taxpayers’ money.

In his petition, the petitioner requested the court to remove the names of politicians, including Benazir Bhutto from government buildings like the Islamabad International Airport, hospitals, government and semi-government departments and institutions.

Feroz Shah Gillani submitted that Benazir Bhutto had  neither been recognised as an undisputed leader of the country nor had she attained the status of a national hero.

He said that Bhutto had not followed democratic principles, since Benazir Bhutto had admitted in her book ‘Reconciliation’ that she had struck a deal with former military ruler, General (Retired)Pervez Musharraf.

The petitioner argued that Benazir Bhutto’s two terms as prime minister had ended before completion on charges of corruption and incompetence. Therefore she could not be declared a national hero, the petitioner’s counsel submitted.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th, 2010.