PESHAWAR: Maulana Mufti Mahmud, General Secretay of Jamiatul Ulema-i-Islam, today [April 1] assured President Bhutto that the JUI and the National Awami Party would strictly abide by every clause of the tripartite agreement. …Mufti Saheb, however, regretted that the People’s Party had violated the agreement by taking basic policy decisions in the Frontier Province without consultation with the majority parties. Mufti Mahmud said after March 6, it was morally necessary for the Governor of the NWFP to consult the majority party leaders while taking important decisions. But it appears that the pace of these decisions boosted after the agreement. He described it as a calculated attempt to create difficulties for the new Governors.

The JUI Secretary-General said both the NAP and JUI will strictly abide by the agreement and they hoped PPP will also respect its word. In fact, the three parties should also abide by the spirit in which the agreement was signed and should create an atmosphere of … understanding instead of ill-will… . Asked about the stand taken by Khan Abdul Wali Khan that the decisions taken after March 6 were not binding on the new Governments, Mufti Saheb said Khan Wali Khan had not challenged the right of the Governors to take these decisions but he had objected to the manner in which adverse conditions were being intentionally created.

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2022