Karachi, May 25, 2023 (PPI-OT): Chairman Pakistan People’s Party, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari while talking to journalists outside his chamber in the Parliament House said in response to a question that as far as the question regarding restrictions on parties is concerned, in principle no political party should be banned. I oppose it, but the political party must also have the desire to remain a political party. He said that if the PTI has the potential to become a political party, I think that the action of May should have never happened. Till today, the focus is on the Corps Commander and GHQ regarding these attacks. When the details will come before our nation that how coordinated attacks on our military installations were carried out, I think no Pakistani can do that, every Pakistani should abide by the law. Political parties do politics in the parliament. Political parties do not use stones, sticks and guns against the state.
Chairman PPP said in response to a question that I think whenever people hear about the military court, there is an automatic reaction. There is a misunderstanding in the world, in the country and in the media, that maybe they want to do against the terrorists of May 9, the way military courts were established in Pakistan by amending the constitution in the past. We do not want to establish a new military court, neither we are bringing any new amendment in the constitution, nor we are seeking to bring any amendment in the law of Pakistan. If someone has violated the law, action should be taken against him constitutional amendment. You will remember that after the APS tragedy an amendment was done for a time period. That term has expired. Pakistan People’s Party can never support any undemocratic and unconstitutional behaviour rather we will oppose it. As far as the existing law and constitution is concerned, it is violated whether it is the Army Act, whether it is the Official Secret Act and Whether it is a terrorist act. Every man can lodge an FIR and no one can stop anyone.
In response to a question, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that Imran Khan has been the prime minister and is a politician of 70 years, he should take care of this matter. In response to a question, he said that when Mian Sahib realized that there should be democracy in Pakistan and the country should run democratically, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto engaged him with her. You may remember that I was the most pro-dialogue before the May 9 incident and my decision was to form a committee of Pakistan People’s Party to unite all our allies and contact them and convince them. I went by helicopter and tried to convince everyone by myself that we should have a dialogue with them and that dialogue was on the issue of holding elections on the same day all over Pakistan.
That dialogue was successful. He declared before you that elections should be held on the same day in the entire country. In the dialogue, our representatives had to convince us and Khan Sahib’s representatives had to convince him. Khan Sahib has never taken any political decision or democratic decision in his life, he sabotaged his own decision and sabotaged our decisions too. The PTI came here in 2014, attacked this parliament, attacked PTV, but we did nothing with it. When he came to power, we brought no-confidence to remove him, which was a democratic method, but his behaviour was undemocratic. Justice Bandial also said that it was an undemocratic and unconstitutional action, but I stood up in the assembly and said that action should be taken against those who violate the constitution. I am sorry to say that they did not take any action.
In response to a question, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that this question was raised in the cabinet regarding Al-Qadir Trust, but I opposed it and said that we have to work, we have to fix the economy, we have to fix the foreign policy. About foreign funding, we had a proof brought by Akbar S. Babar, the federal government had the power to ban it, but we said not to introduce these traditions, it would be a bad example, we are democratic people. I understand now that I have no place, no way, that I can in any way ignore the action of the 9th of May and the law that he brought when he was Prime Minister, the amendment to the Army Act. If he didn’t like something, he could have brought an amendment but he didn’t. PTI will have to face the existing law. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, in response to a question, said that as far as the question of Afghanistan is concerned, we are engaging them to address them in terms of security and our priority will be to work with them.
Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto had said that the entire Pakistan is on the same page regarding Kashmir. As far as the OIC is concerned, Kashmir got this opportunity in the contact group during the tenure of Shaheed Bibi and since then they are in the contact group. Chairman Bilawal said “when I became the Minister of Foreign Affairs, I also got the opportunity to chair the meeting of the CFM of the OIC when I was also the Foreign Minister-Chairman of the OIC and in this meeting, I assured that Kashmir was not only seated as an observer but also got the opportunity to give a speech which the present president of Azad Kashmir delivered”.
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