ISLAMABAD: The Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Syed Khurshid Shah, has said that besides highlighting the Kashmir issue in his speech at the UN General Assembly, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should have informed the world about India’s act of fomenting terrorism in Pakistan.

Commenting on the prime minister’s speech, he said that though Mr Sharif had highlighted the Kashmir issue he did not talk about threats being faced by the country because of India-sponsored terrorism.

“Instead of delivering an ordinary speech, the prime minister should have emphatically and categorically highlighted threats and problems being faced by Pakistan due to Indian involvement in incidents of terrorism in the country,” the opposition leader said in a statement issued by his office on Thursday.

He said the recent arrest of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav in Balochistan was a clear proof of Indian interference in Pakistan and the prime minister should have told the world how India was sponsoring terrorism and lawlessness in Pakistan.

“This is a good time for us to expose the real face of India which claims to be a secular state.”

Mr Shah also criticised the prime minister for not taking parliament into confidence before proceeding to the US for addressing the UN General Assembly. “It seems that the prime minister considers his adviser on foreign affairs a “Mr know all”.

He said the performance of the government’s advisers on foreign affairs was before the nation and was evident from the fact that Pakistan was getting isolated in the world community and did not enjoy good relations with any of its neighbours.

Expressing concern over the tabling of a bill in the US Congress seeking to declare Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism, Mr Shah asked the government to give up the practice of running foreign policy on an ad-hoc basis and adopt a consistent policy.

“It is regrettable that the two most important ministries — defence and foreign affairs — are being run on an ad-hoc basis,” he added.

The opposition leader asked the government to take the parliament into confidence over the recent escalation in tension between Pakistan and India which he said had almost created war hysteria.

“It is the responsibility of the government to devise a strategy to deal with Indian interference in the country after thoroughly discussing the issue on the floor of the parliament,” he said.

PPP MNAs’ meeting

The parliamentary leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in the National Assembly, Syed Naveed Qamar, has convened a meeting of the party’s members of the assembly at Parliament House on Sept 27 to discuss the strategy for the coming session of the lower house.

Sources in the party told Dawn that besides discussing issues related to legislation, the meeting would discuss options to force the government to hold a full-fledged debate on the Panama leaks scam. The opposition members, they said, would also press the government to hold a debate on the country’s foreign policy with particular focus on the tension between India and Pakistan after violence in occupied Kashmir.

The government has convened sessions of the National Assembly and the Senate from Monday. The sittings are expected to continue for two weeks.

Published in Dawn, September 23rd, 2016

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