LAHORE, Jan 16: Minister for Railways Ghulam Ahmad Bilour has said the government could not work out a strategy to properly handle the long march of Dr Tahirul Qadri.

It would have been wise to contain the long march either in Lahore or stop it anywhere en route, the minister told reporters after visiting the residence of Pakistan Railways Employees (Prem) Union central senior vice-president Sheikh Anwar on Wednesday.

Accompanied by Railways General Manager (Operations) Junaid Qureshi and Awami National Party (ANP) Punjab President Malik Sohail, the minister offered condolences to Mr Anwar over the death of his father.

“Let bygones be bygones. No-one should be allowed to launch a long march in future. Politics on the basis of long marches and sit-ins will do more harm than good to Pakistan.

Elements attempting to send an elected parliament home through unconstitutional means cannot either be well-wishers of democracy nor Pakistan. Dr Qadri should wrap up the sit-in and should make preparations for the forthcoming general election,” said Mr Bilour, who is a central leader of the ANP which is a coalition partner in the PPP-led government at the centre.

AWP: The Awami Workers Party has rejected Dr Tahirul Qadri’s sit-in and expressed reservations over the Supreme Court’s verdict in the Rental Power Projects case.

“We reject the so-called revolution of Dr Qadri as he is the face of yet another conspiracy to derail the democratic process. The process of forming a caretaker government to oversee the forthcoming general election is already under way as per the guidelines laid out in the 19th and 20th amendments,” the AWP said in a statement on Wednesday.

It said under no circumstances would the AWP tolerate this conspiracy and would soon dedicate its human and intellectual resources to ensure elections were held on schedule.

“We also express dismay at the timing of the Supreme Court’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for the sitting prime minister.

The apex court has consistently asserted that it has forever banished the doctrine of necessity to the dustbin of history, and the AWP expects that it will honour its commitment to ensuring a peaceful democratic transition from the present elected regime to the next,” it added.