QUETTA: Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said that conspiracies being hatched by India against the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will be foiled with the support of the people of Pakistan.

Talking to journalists after inaugurating an executive passport office here on Thursday, he said that India was using the soil of Afghanistan for such conspiracies, but expressed the hope that the CPEC project would be made successful.

He said that Pakistan allowed the mother and wife of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav to meet him purely on humanitarian grounds, but the same day the Indian army violated the ceasefire agreement and opened unprovoked fire from across the Line of Control, resulting in the martyrdom of three Pakistani soldiers.

The minister said that under the one-window operation at the executive passport office, 160 passports would be issued daily. Male and female applicants would be entertained separately, he added.

He said that earlier the people had faced difficulties in acquiring passports and CNICs, but now they would get the same facilities being enjoyed in developed countries.

Says Afghan soil being used for such conspiracies

“The PML-N government would fulfil all promises it made with the people,” the minister said.

Mr Iqbal said that the federal government was making all-out efforts to take Balochistan forward in the process of development so as to bring it on a par with other provinces of the country.

He said that the federal government had already started construction of roads to connect far-flung areas of Balochistan with main highways to provide batter travelling facilities to the people.

He said that the enemies of Pakistan were using different tactics and propaganda to fail it economically.

Mr Iqbal said that it was the PML-N government which ended loadshedding and energy shortfall in the country. He said that the PML-N would never go for a National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).

He said that the policy of sit-ins must end as it would damage the country economically and politically and asked Allama Tahirul Qadri to abandon his sit-in plan and save the country from further damage.

The minister said that the United States should stop hurling threats at Pakistan and recognise the sacrifices it had rendered in the war against terrorism.

He said the PML-N government would complete its five-year term and elections would be held in 2018 on time.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2017