KARACHI, Nov 4: Senator Prof Ghafoor Ahmad said on Tuesday that the government was shying away from discussing matters of prime concern to the people of Pakistan and claimed that his three such resolutions sent for a debate in the upper house had been returned by the Senate chairman.

One of the resolutions pertained to an agreement entered between Pakistan and the US in July last for the surrender and transfer of each others’ nationals and military personnel without due process of law.

Prof Ghafoor Ahmad, who is also deputy chief of Jamaat-i-Islami, said the resolution was declared inadmissible on the ground that its subject matter was of secret and of sensitive nature.

The second resolution was about the army operation conducted in South Waziristan on Oct 2, 2003, which had resulted in the death of eight suspected Al Qaeda fighters and two troops.

Prof Ghafoor claimed that this resolution was also held inadmissible by the chairman on the ground that it was of sensitive nature.

Through the third resolution, Prof Ghafoor had moved that in acknowledgement of the services for democracy by late Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, some important institution and road be named after him and commemorative postal stamp be issued. This was held inadmissible on the ground that it was not specific.

A call attention notice by Senator Ghafoor Ahmad pertaining to recent purchase of Israeli-made Phalcon radars to be fitted on Russian IL-76 aircraft by India at the cost of more than one billion dollars, which was likely to be used against Pakistan, was also returned as inadmissible on technical grounds as it was not accompanied by explanatory note and also because it was not related to a matter which was primarily concern of the government.

The JI senator said if matters of such nature were not allowed to be discussed in the upper house, what was the other forum where such matters of public importance could be discussed. He said that if necessary, such matters could be discussed in camera in the House.