|
|
|
| June 17, 2005 | Friday | Jumadi-ul-Awwal 9, 1426 |
No change in plan despite controversy, says Rashid
ISLAMABAD, June 16: Information Minister Rashid Ahmed said on Thursday he planned to go ahead with his visit to Srinagar on June 30 despite allegations about his running training camps for Kashmiris. Replying to a question by Dawn, he said he possessed all the documents needed for the visit. “I am a state subject and have given the documents to the relevant authorities for the June 30 journey to Srinagar,” said Mr Ahmed.
An opposition senator had raised the issue of training camps for “terrorists” and the treasury benches kept quiet on the controversy and the allegation was not denied on the floor of the upper house. Education Minister Lt-Gen (Retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi, a former director-general of ISI, was the only exception and he objected to the use of word ‘terrorists’. “The honourable member has called the Kashmiri Mujahideen terrorists. They are not terrorists but Mujahideen,” said Lt-Gen (Retd) Qazi in response to questions raised by Senator Raza Muhammad Raza of the Pakhtoonkhawa Milli Awami Party.
Speaking on a point of order, Senator Raza demanded that President Gen Musharraf should take note of the terrorists training camps run by Mr Ahmed and initiate action against him.
He said a former army chief, Gen (Retd) Mirza Aslam Beg, had said that Sheikh Rashid used to run militant training camps in Rawalpindi.
“Gen Musharraf proclaims to be fighting terrorism and now important evidence has come against his information minister,” said Senator Raza.
Mirza Aslam Beg is reported to have stated that Mr Ahmed established a camp at the height of the armed struggle in Kashmir but closed it down in 1991 under instructions of then prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
The controversy about Mr Ahmed’s involvement in running militant training camps started on June 13, when visiting Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Chairman Yasin Malik made a public statement about the camp. The government has denied that Mr Malik made such a comment.
Former interior minister Maj-Gen (r) Naseerullah Babar is reported to have said Shaikh Rashid had himself stated in 1989 that he was running a training-cum-refugee camp for the Kashmiris in Tarnol near Islamabad. The People’s Party Parliamentarians has demanded an inquiry to determine how much training of militants had actually taken place.
“If only a small part was spent on training and bulk on other activities it would make it clear that land was given for some collateral purposes,” the PPP said.
Meanwhile, APP reported on Thursday that the information minister had described as unfortunate an Indian and Western media campaign against him and said his place to visit Srinagar on June 30 remained unchanged.
|
|
|
|
