PESHAWAR: Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the Red Shirt leader, was sentenced [to] three years rigorous imprisonment — the maximum punishment under Section 40, Frontier Crimes Regulations — before he was sent to Tank in the West Punjab, Premier Abdul Qayyum Khan revealed … today [June 16]. Asked about the general situation, the Premier said that everywhere people had welcomed the information with satisfaction and not a single untoward incident had occurred, so far. He, however, gave an unambiguous warning to mischief-mongers saying that … whoever attempted to raise his head against the state would be dealt with mercilessly.

[Meanwhile, it was also reported] “The Governor-General was forgotten, the Sind Governor was ignored, the other Ministers were reduced to mere ornaments … . In Mr M.A. Khuhro, the ex-Premier, we had a second Hitler in Sind.” The above was the picture of Mr Khuhro’s regime as portrayed before the Special Court of Inquiry by Mr Parmanand Kundanmal, Special Counsel to the Court, while opening the inquiry into the 62 charges of maladministration … against Mr Khuhro.

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2023