QUETTA: Treasury and opposition benches, while expressing concern over bomb attacks in Quetta over the past three weeks, have called for the implementation of the National Action Plan and sought an in-camera briefing on the steps taken by the government against terrorists.

Taking part in a debate on the law and order situation on Thursday evening, the lawmakers recalled that three bomb attacks occurred in the heart of the city recently in which over a dozen lives were lost and up to 60 people suffered injuries. The session in the absence of Speaker Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo and Deputy Speaker Sardar Babar Khan Musakhail was chaired by a member of the panel of chairmen, Mir Ahmed Nawaz Baloch.

The house offered fateha for over 70 people, mostly lawyers, who died in a bomb attack on the premises of the Civil Hospital three years ago.

MPAs Malik Naseer Shahwani, Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind, Finance Minister Mir Zahoor Buledi, Syed Fazal Agha, Leader of Opposition Malik Sikandar and others expressed serious concern over failure of the police to arrest any of the terrorists involved in this inhuman act despite passage of three years.

Qadir Nayal of the Hazara Democratic Party, Nasar­ullah Zerey of the Pakhtun­khwa Milli Awami Party, Akhtar Hussain Langove, provincial ministers Zamarak Khan Piralizai, Saleem Ahmed Khosa and Malik Naseer Ahmed Shahwani spoke at length on the law and order issue.

Members on both sides of the aisle underlined the need for unity among opposition and treasury benches in the fight against terrorism.

“We have buried more than 80 bodies of leaders and workers of the BNP-Mengal who became victims of terrorism,” Akhtar Hussain Langove said.

Qadir Nayal said that since 1999, over 2,000 people from the Hazara community had lost their lives in terrorist attacks. “The government should set up a commission for probing the genocide of the Hazara community,” Mr Nayal suggested.

Provincial minister Mir Saleem Ahmed Khosa said that hundreds of security personnel from the police, Frontier Corps and Pakistan Army had laid down their lives in the line of duty to protect the masses. He said the situation had improved to some extent which was the result of the sacrifices rendered by the security forces. He regretted that the opposition never appreciated the sacrifices of the security personnel.

A resolution regarding child labour in coal mines, tabled by Nasarullah Zerey of the PkMAP, was adopted by the house. It said that under-age children were working in coal mines which is against the Child Labour Act.

The assembly approved another resolution regarding construction of road projects between Mashkel and Nokundi in Washuk district.

Published in Dawn, August 10th, 2019