KARACHI, Feb 15: Assassination of Pakistan People’s Party chairperson and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was a conspiracy against progression of Muslims towards moderation.

This was stated by Barrister Kamal Azfar, a central leader of the party and former Sindh governor, at a ceremony held at the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST) for the launching of its publication, “Reflections on Benazir Bhutto”, here on Friday.

The book is a collection of articles on Ms Bhutto published in the international press after her assassination.

Barrister Azfar observed that extremist forces were pushing Pakistan into a dark era and Ms Bhutto was fighting against their designs.

Barrister Farooq H. Naek, Ms Bhutto’s legal adviser, said Ms Bhutto was a religious person and believed in moving ahead without having any grudge against anyone. He recalled that even during her meeting with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Saudi Arabia, she did not bring up the subject of persecution that had brought sufferings to her and her family. Tariq Islam, maternal nephew of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, read out quotes from the letter the executed PPP founder had written to Benazir Bhutto from his death cell. In his last meeting with his daughter, Z. A. Bhutto had asked her to carry on the struggle for democracy and fight against extremism, he recalled, adding that in the letter Ms Bhutto had written to her father at the age of only 17, she had analysed the world political situation and discussed the ways of enabling Pakistan to move towards becoming a progressive nation.

Dr Javaid Laghari, who edited the book, said: “One can never write enough about her super human qualities as she maintained multi-faced relationships. She was courageous and brave and had a spirit of heroism and chivalry. She was far bolder than any male political leader in the world.”

He also read out quotations from many writers and personalities who believed that Benazir Bhutto was a popular politician with whom an intelligent, candid and frank discussion could be held without fear of any repercussions.