July 15, 2003	Tuesday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, July 14: People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) MPA from Punjab Farzana Raja has accused the government of committing “human rights abuse in the name of accountability.”

In a statement here on Monday, the PPP MPA criticized the government for not allowing medical treatment to her husband Pir Mukarram Shah, who is on a physical remand in an alleged corruption case.

Ms Farzana said Pir Mukarram was a patient of diabetes and his sugar level was crossing limits which could be proved fatal. She alleged that the government was politically victimizing her for raising voice against the Legal Framework Order (LFO) in the provincial assembly.

She further alleged that the judge had been sent on leave to further delay her husband’s medical treatment and to ensure more “torture” through physical remand.

She asked the government to stop forthwith political victimization, being unleashed on its political opponents. She said Pir Mukarram was reinstated in service on the orders of the Federal Service Tribunal, but instead of allowing him to take charge of the post from which he had been illegally thrown out, he was arrested by National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

The PPP leader said the NAB was being used as political arm of the government. “By protecting the corrupt within the army and hounding the political opponents, NAB had lost its credibility.

“The arrest of Pir Mukarram is a clear demonstration of how state terror is employed through NAB in the pretext of fighting corruption”, she said.

Ms Farzana said if her husband was not allowed medical treatment, the PPP would raise the issue in parliament. “We will fight for our rights and not allow the government to corner the opposition anymore”, she declared.

She said on one hand the government was talking about negotiations while on the other hand, it was victimizing the opposition members.