KHAIRPUR, Aug 22: The president of the Sindh chapter of the People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP), Syed Qaim Ali Shah, has called for setting up an impartial caretaker government before the general elections to ensure that the elections were held in a fair and transparent manner.

Mr Shah said at different gatherings of party workers in the city on Monday night that the elections would surely be rigged if they were not held under an impartial caretaker government.

He said that the highhandedness of chief minister and police had become so destructive that even the ruling party MPAs, MNAs and activists were compelled to desert PML-Q and join PPP.

Mr Shah appealed to the human rights organisations to take notice of the gross violations of human rights in the province, which had become order of the day.

Citing an example, he said that police released about 22 illegally detained people from Sobhodero police station on the directives of Sindh High Court a couple of days ago, who had been subjected to torture, and demanded that the police officials involved in arrest and torture should be booked.

In another incident, Ahmedpur police arrested three people from Chattan Shah village about four days ago and then released one of them, Pakhar Jagirani, after subjecting him to torture.

He had to be admitted to the ICU of Civil Hospital Khairpur but no action had thus far been taken against such excesses, he said.

He blamed it on the chief minister’s inefficiency, which he said was responsible for rise in the incidents of police excesses and political victimisation in the district.

Mr Shah said that people of Sindh and the country were still loyal with PPP and their support would be proved provided the elections were held in a free and fair manner under the supervision of an impartial caretaker government.

Our Jacobabad correspondent adds: Speaking at a public meeting in Thul in connection with the Pakistan People’s Party’s mass contact campaign, Qaim Ali Shah said that his party and their leadership had always struggled against dictators in the country.

He termed the General Pervez Musharraf’s era as the darkest one in the Pakistan’s history and said that politics of ‘gundaism’ would end and the dictatorship would meet its natural death soon.

Later, talking to reporters at Dinpur, the residence of Mir Nasir Khan Khoso, Mr Shah said that the political deal between President Pervez Musharraf and Ms Benazir was aimed at to taking the country out of the crisis.

While criticising the chief minister Sindh, He said that Mr Arbab has caught ‘Benazir-phobia’ hence he was wasting his energies on criticising PPP leadership rather focussing on real problems of Sindh.

“Those who consider ‘Chaudhry’ their leader tell, when he had visited Sindh to redress people’s grievances,” he asked the people present there. Qaim Ali Shah claimed that PPP has always preferred national interest rather personal ones. He said the door for those who had changed political loyalties has been closed now forever.

Aftab Shaban Mirani, Aijaz Jakhrani, Mir Hassan Khoso and others also spoke on the occasion.

Our Mirpurkhas correspondent adds: PPP MNA Qurban Ali has said that the government has been trapped in a difficult situation and those who are advising President Musharraf to get elected in uniform through present assemblies are involving him in new difficulties.

He was speaking at a People’s Party Parliamentarians meeting here on Tuesday which was attended by MNA Pir Aftab Hussain Shah Jilani, Mir Munawwar Talpur, Siddiq Memon and others.

Mr Jilani claimed that PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto had presented demands of the people before Gen Musharraf through negotiations with which were being labelled as deal in a disinformation campaign against her. He predicted that the PPP would win the upcoming general elections if they were held in transparent manner.

The meeting reposed confidence in the leadership of Ms Bhutto and expressed support for her policy of dialogue with the general.