LAHORE, Feb 18: Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has expressed his deep anger and resentment at the resolution presented in the US Congress regarding Balochistan.

In a statement here on Saturday, he warned those who drafted the resolution that “Pakistan is a sovereign and independent country and must not be considered a US state.”

Dissatisfied with the explanation forwarded by the US State Department regarding this resolution, he said it was based on prejudice and the mala fide intention had hurt the Pakistanis already stung by drone attacks.

He said the problems of Balochistan were the problems of Pakistan and we would not allow any county to challenge sovereignty.

He asked that on what grounds the US officials talk about human rights as they unconditionally supported dictator Pervez Musharraf, the killer of Baloch leader Akbar Bugti, and the innocent students of Lal Masjid.

He questioned why those adventurers were not condemning the killing of thousands of people and openly violating human rights in Kashmir and Palestine.

Firdous: Federal Information Minister Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said the US House of Representatives' bill regarding Balochistan was an interference in internal affairs of Pakistan, reports APP.

Talking to media persons after inaugurating the sports and cultural festival of Superior University on Raiwind Road, Dr Firdous said Pakistan had condemned the unjustified move through the Foreign Office.

“We were expecting such stunts in the wake of trilateral summit of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, as all the three neighbouring Muslim countries have resolved to revive and promote their cultural, social and economic and trade relations,” she added.

Meanwhile, religio-political parties have condemned the bill introduced in the United States House of Representatives for “self-determination right to the people of Balochistan”, calling it a blatant interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs.

In a statement here on Saturday, Jamaat-i-Islami amir Syed Munawwar Hasan said the United States had come out openly against Pakistan and it might use the United Nations platform to separate Balochistan from this country in the manner it had done in the case of East Timor and South Sudan.

He stressed the government to review its ties with the US, end its support to the so-called war against terror and devise an independent foreign policy and efforts be made for the formation of a Muslim bloc with the support of China, Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey. The bill introduced in the House of Representatives made it clear that the US and India both were behind the Baloch nationalists and were distributing arms and funds among them.

Jamaatud Dawa chief Prof Hafiz Muhammad Saeed said that after losing war in Afghanistan, the US wanted to establish itself in Balochistan.

He said meddling into Pakistan’s internal affairs had surged to an alarming point as both the US and India were spending millions of dollars to raise a separatist force in Balochistan province.

Demanding the rulers to take a notice of the sensitive situation, he said the Defence of Pakistan Council, a conglomerate of politico-religious parties, would convene an all-party conference in Quetta on Feb 27 where Baloch nationalists would also be invited to devise a joint strategy against the conspiracies.

JUP Secretary-General Zawwar Bahadur said the resolution had exposed the so-called US friendship and demanded of the government to formally lodge a strong protest with the State Department and recall its ambassador from Washington.