December 4, 2001	Tuesday	Ramazan 18, 1422

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ISLAMABAD, Dec 3: The government is considering fresh measures, including new legislation, to firmly deal with the religious extremists and those who instigate violence.

According to official sources, President Gen Pervez Musharraf has agreed with his cabinet colleagues that without maintaining the law and order and without cutting religious extremists to size, there could not be any business activity nor could investment dollars pour in.

During the last two cabinet meetings, the issue of law and order was extensively discussed during which a majority of the ministers advised the president to get tough with the religious extremists and violators of law.

“The rule of law has to be established at all cost to ensure peace and increased business activities,” said a ministerial source. He said a marginal local and foreign investment was recorded over the past few years, for which the law and order situation was chiefly to blame.

He said the ministry of interior was finalising various measures to be shortly approved by the federal cabinet to deal with the issue. One of the major recommendations, he said, was to provide necessary equipment, training, transportation and better salaries to the police to ensure law and order in the country.

Interior Minister Lt-Gen (retd) Moeenuddin Haider was expected to give a presentation to the federal cabinet shortly on how his ministry planned to improve the law and order and discourage religious extremists.

At the same time, the president has directed the ministry of religious affairs and the Islamic Ideology Council to come out with new suggestions on modernising Deeni Madaris by imparting English and other worldly subjects there.

Chairman of the Islamic Ideology Council Dr S.M. Zaman said the new syllabus was being introduced in Deeni Madaris to have a new system of education.

“Initially, we will be establishing three model schools at Karachi, Islamabad and Sukkar to also impart new subjects in these Madaris,” he said.