QUETTA: Home Minister Mir Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti along with other treasury and opposition members staged a walkout from the Balochistan Assembly on Thursday in protest against the attitude of the bureaucracy who, they alleged, were neither giving respect to the house and public representatives nor attending the session.

Mr Bugti strongly reacted to the absence of provincial secretaries and other officials concerned in the official gallery while responding to a question of Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetiran of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl who pointed out that some police officials and a lady doctor were using their influence to put pressure on the woman who had been sexually abused by a police officer at a post in Dera Murad Jamali.

Yasmin Lehri, who was presiding over the session in the absence of Speaker Raheela Durrani, told the home minister that it was an important issue and he must look into it.

Mr Bugti informed the house that an inquiry into the crime was under way and those found involved would be brought to justice. However, he regretted that when the secretaries and officials concerned were not present in the house to whom he would issue directives for taking action against the accused.

“I am powerless and cannot take any action against the secretary of my own department and police officials.”

He asked the chair to suspend those government officials who were not respecting the house and public representatives.

After his speech, Mr Bugti walked out of the house and was joined by treasury and opposition members.

However, Leader of the Opposition Abdul Ziaratwal brought them back to the house after some secretaries arrived in the official gallery on the order of the chair.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2018