FAISALABAD, March 10: The opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly, Qasim Zia, on Monday asked the chief minister to resign for his failure to protect the honour and prestige of the elected representatives.

Speaking at a news conference at the DHQ Hospital here, Qasim Zia held Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi responsible for the kidnapping and torture of Sanaullah.

He said it was state terrorism and a warning to the opposition leaders that they should not raise voice against the misdeeds of the rulers.

“We were ready to cooperate with the government on important issues but the kidnapping and torture of Rana Sanaullah forced us to re-think our strategy.”

He said that a formal requisition has been made for the Punjab Assembly session to discuss the incident.

He vowed to continue struggle for the restoration of the constitution and to raise voice against the wrongdoings of the rulers. “No one would be allowed to impose black laws in the country by force,” he said.

PPP’s Punjab Secretary-General Aftab Ahmed Khan regretted that no member from the treasury benches had so far visited Rana Sanaullah.

MPAs Raja Riaz, Asad Moazzam, Jahanzaib Imtiaz, Sheikh Ijaz, Malik Nawaz, Asghar Ali Qaiser and Faizullah Kamoka were also present at the news conference.