QUETTA, Sept 26: The Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights has called for formation of working groups in all the provinces to protect the rights of people.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, the chairman of the committee, Afrasiab Khattak, along with Senator Mushahidullah Khan, Senator Farhatullah Babar and Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, said that protecting the lives and property of the people was the responsibility of the state but the provincial government had not taken any serious steps in this regard.

They said the law and order situation was not just poor in Balochistan but in the entire country and that the federal and provincial governments should chalk out a joint strategy to protect the lives and rights of people.

They asserted that the Balochistan government had not taken appropriate steps to improve the situation in the province.

The representatives of the Hazara community and the Sunni ulema had put their points of views before the committee members and said there was no conflict between them, the senators observed.

The committee members were of the view that there was lack of coordination between the federal and provincial government departments owing to which the situation was deteriorating in different parts of the country.

They claimed that setting up of the working groups in the four provinces would create better understanding between them and help control the violation of human rights.

The senators said the committee members discussed issues of target killing and violation of rights in Balochistan with the provincial government officials and also presented their points of view to them. Earlier, the provincial chief secretary and home secretary briefed the committee members over the prevailing situation in the province.—Our Correspondent