KARACHI: PPP slams ‘harassment’ of security team member
By Our Reporter
KARACHI, Oct 24: PPP leaders have strongly condemned the police raid and harassment of a security team member of Benazir Bhutto, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, and his wife Dr Fehmeeda Mirza, accusing Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim of “complicity in a conspiracy to harm the party chairperson.”
Addressing a hurriedly called press conference, Sindh PPP chief Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Dr Fehmeeda Mirza and other party leaders warned the government to stop such tactics, “otherwise it would be accountable to the people.”
They alleged that the Sindh chief minister was directly involved in the act and apparently phoned the local police officials to “teach the PPP leader a lesson and to give a message to other leaders to desist from populist rallies.”
They further said that police trespassed on the residence of the lady PPP MNA and DSP Investigations Ejaz Rajpar manhandled the private guards and servants of Dr Zulfiqar Mirza and enquired about the routine of the PPP leader.
Dr Fehmeeda Mirza said that her children were confined to their home and were not going to school after the police raid. She said the police had cordoned off her home and on the second day conducted the raid. She said her vehicle was also chased by plain-clothes policemen while her servants were being harassed.
Rashid’s remarks censured
The Pakistan People’s Party has rejected Railways Minister Shaikh Rashid Ahmed’s remarks against Benazir Bhutto and the Oct 19 blast as a validation of an act of terror and has also taken strong exception to reports regarding a recent loan write-off.
Reacting to Sheikh Rashid’s reported press conference in which he had stated that Ms Bhutto could can never be the prime minister again, PPP Information Secretary Sherry Rehman said on Wednesday that Mr Rashid should worry about keeping his own constituency instead of attempting to “subvert the right of the people to elect their own leader.”
“When a cabinet minister begins to eliminate the name of the chairperson of the largest political party as a prospective candidate for the PM’s slot, or any slot, he is not just exposing his own panic at the massive reception she got from the electorate, but also striking at the heart of the democratic process,” said Ms Rehman.
She also took serious exception to reports that an amount of Rs54 billion was written off under a dubious scheme introduced in 2002. The scheme, she said, benefited 50,000 individuals, including politicians, civil and military leaders and a few top business houses of the country. Two sitting chief ministers and their families also benefited from this audacious patronage plan, it was alleged.
