LAHORE: The President of the Pakistan Muslim League (Qayyum Group), Khan Abdul Qayyum Khan, yesterday [June 21] made a three-point demand, namely that President should give a constitution guaranteeing strong centre and banning of all such political parties and groups as supported Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Six-Points or otherwise had secessionist tendencies. He was addressing a largely attended meeting of his party workers here....

He said it was because of a strong Centre that this country was able to cope with the recent situation in East Pakistan which he described as the third big war India has waged against Pakistan. Khan Abdul Qayyum Khan said the present policy of jealously safeguarding the integrity and solidarity of the country should be vigorously pursued without caring for the so-called world public opinion as no weight could be given to any public opinion outside Pakistan so far as the national interests of Pakistan were concerned.

PPP to stick to promises

[Meanwhile, as reported by agencies in Rawalpindi,] Mr Ghulam Mustafa Khar, General Secretary of People’s Party, Punjab, said here yesterday [June 21] his party would never bypass the promises it had made to the people. Addressing the party workers, he urged them to consolidate party organisation which he said was essential for bringing about the basic changes envisaged in the PPP programme.

He was confident that the people would get their democratic rights and asked workers to be ready to surmount all difficulties to implement the party’s programme for ameliorating the condition of the poor. Mr Khar said any conspiracy to disrupt the party ranks would end in smoke because the people were “solidly” with the PPP’s Chairman and fully supported his programme.

Bhutto wants revolutionary changes

[Agencies add from Quetta,] Mr Z.A. Bhutto, Chairman of the PPP, has called for revolutionary changes in the economic structure. Poverty and sickness could only be rooted out through revolution he said, while addressing the workers of the Quetta Cantonment branch of his party here last evening [June 21] in Chilta Market. He appreciated the sincerity, zeal and hard labour with which workers of his party had worked in this area during the last elections and asked them not to be disheartened. He told them not to be under the presumption that he had forgotten them merely because of the fact that no party candidate was returned in the last elections from this area.

Relief funds going to infiltrators

[Agencies add from London,] The decision by the British charity “War on Want” to end its refugee centre in West Bengal owing to “wilful obstruction” by the Indian authorities came in the wake of disclosures that internal relief funds and supplies were being used to support armed infiltration in East Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2021