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LAHORE, Dec 29: People from different walks of life continued to condemn the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto on Saturday and a number of organisations called for resignation of the government.
JI: Jamaat-i-Islami former amir Mian Tufail Muhammad said those who had killed the PPP chairperson at the present critical juncture of history of Pakistan had put its integrity and solidarity at stake.
He said he considered Ms Bhutto’s demise a national tragedy and expressed heartfelt condolences with Asif Ali Zardari and other members of his family over the irreparable loss.
PTI: The Punjab chapter of the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) decided to mourn the death of the former prime minister for a week and keep its activities suspended.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the party held here on Saturday.
Speaking at the meeting, provincial president Ahsan Rashid said the death was the result of target killing. The government was now changing its stand in a futile bid to prove that it was an accident. He was of the view that agencies and criminals were involved in incidents of arson and looting during protests.
LPC: Funeral prayers of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto were offered after a condolence meeting held at the Lahore Press Club.
LPC president Mohsin Goraya, secretary Syed Shoaibuddin, Punjab Union of Journalists chief Arif Hamid Bhatti and Supreme Court Bar Association secretary Amin Javed paid glowing tributes to Ms Bhutto during the reference.
TANZEEM: Tanzeem-i-Islami acting amir Chaudhry Rehmatullah Buttar was of the view that the Liaquat Bagh tragedy was the result of the incompetence of the ruling clique.
He said the government was making futile attempts to cover up the incident and belittle its importance. Its attitude towards the incident and efforts to project it as a routine mishap indicated that the rulers did not value human life.
PMA: The Pakistan Medical Association held a reference for the former prime minister Benazir Bhutto here on Saturday.
Speaking on the occasion, PMA leaders Prof Dr.Yasmin Rashed, Dr.Azeemudin Zahid, Dr.Imtiaz Rasul and Dr.Ashraf Nizami said the demise of the PPP chairperson had deprived Pakistan of a great leader. It would take a long time to fill the void created due to her assassination.
JAH: Demanding an impartial inquiry into the Liaquat Bagh tragedy, Jamiat-i-Ahle Hadith Punjab political committee chairman Rana Muhammad Nasrullah Khan said the government could not cover up the realities by attributing it to Al-Qaeda and Taliban.
He said the assassination was a conspiracy to trigger a civil war in the country. He said President Pervez Musharraf had failed to control terrorism during the past eight years and could not be expected to overcome it in future as well.
PWF: The assassination of the PPP leader was described as a national tragedy at a meeting of the Pakistan Workers Federation (PWF) held at Labour Hall with Chaudhry Nawaz in the chair.
Addressing the meeting, federation secretary-general Khurshid Ahmed said workers throughout the country were grieved over her demise because of the steps taken by her and her father Z.A.Bhutto for their welfare.
The meeting ended with offering of ‘fateha’ for her and other victims of the Liaquat Bagh tragedy.
ASR: Paying homage to Ms Bhutto, a spokesman for the ASR Resource Centre said she brought together people across national, ethnic, linguistic, religious and gender divides.
The spokesman criticised the government for making efforts to cover up the national tragedy by describing it merely as an accident, releasing highly dubious medical reports and blaming certain elements without completion of probe into incident.
The spokesman was of the view that an impartial inquiry was not possible into the tragedy as long as President Pervez Musharraf was in power. He should resign without further delay because his reign had been the most tragic, violent and unlawful in the history of the country.
PJT: Pakistan Jamhoori Tehrik convener Safdar Hassan Siddiqi said the former prime minister had been assassinated at the behest of those opposed to a democratic setup in the country.
Describing Ms Bhutto as a brave woman and a towering personality in a condolence message issued here, he said President Musharraf could not absolve himself of the responsibility for the tragedy because he was holding absolute power.
TEACHERS: Adressing a meeting of teachers, Punjab Teachers Union secretary-general Taj Haider and other leaders said the murder was an irreparable national loss.
They said Ms Bhutto was a champion of democracy and supporter of human rights.
NLF: Describing the assassination as a conspiracy against Pakistan, National Labour Federation president Rafiq Ahmed Khan said in a statement that the workers would not remain silent over the tragedy and would launch a countrywide protest movement against it from Jan 5.
He said the resignation of President Musharraf was the only way for resolving the crisis gripping the country as he had put the integrity and solidarity of the country at stake for remaining in power.
PLF: The death of Benazir Bhutto was described as a great loss for the workers at a condolence meeting held by Pakistan Labour Federation with Attiya Saleem in the chair.
Addressing the meeting, federation president Maulvi Muhammad Aslam, secretary-general Haji Muhammad Saeed and Goods Transport Workers Federation secretary Rafiq Qureshi said the former prime minister paid special attention to the welfare of workers and peasants and tried to solve the problems being faced by them.
