PESHAWAR, Dec 23: The NWFP Assembly on Monday termed the overall law and order situation in the province satisfactory.

The third session of the assembly, presided over by Speaker Bakht Jahan Khan, began here on Monday.

Except for Anwar Kamal Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League-N, all opposition leaders spoke on the problems common people face while dealing with the police rather than on the law and order situation.

Taking the floor, Bashir Bilour of the Awami National Party drew the attention of the House towards the rising incidents of kidnapping, dacoity, murder and car-theft in Peshawar. He said if this situation was not checked, nobody would come to invest in the province.

He criticized the police for providing cover to the killers of Pishtakhara union council Nazim Fayyaz Khan Khalil. He observed that it looked as though it was a police state.

He urged the ruling party to stop making tall claims about enforcing Islamic laws in the province and instead face the reality on ground.

The state, he said, was responsible for providing education, health and other basic amenities of life to people besides providing protection to life and property.

He also explained the problems faced by the police force in carrying out their duty.

Speaking on the occasion, PPP leader Abdul Akbar Khan lashed out at the military regime for compounding the mess during the last three years. Every institution was in shambles due to the wrong policies of the military rulers, he added.

He said Pakistan’s society was passing through a pre-revolution phase and now it was the duty of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal to do away with the status-quo and bring a positive change in the province.

Mr Khan said the police were also faced with many problems which needed to be addressed forthwith, otherwise the law and order situation would deteriorate.

Mushtaq Ghani of the PML-Q drew the attention of the House towards the poor conditions of the police force and urged the MMA government to provide them with required facilities.

He said laying every blame on police was not the right attitude, but the police should also enhance its performance. The police force were dominated by the criminal-minded officials, which must be checked, he added.

The Afghan refugees, he said, were also found involved in heinous crimes, which was alarming for the local population.

Qalb-i-Hasan of the ANP highlighted the plight of the police force and said those who do white-collar jobs like professors, doctors and other graduates were also involved in crimes. Poverty and unemployment were the main reasons behind rise in crime rate, he added.