RAWALPINDI: Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Wednesday announced holding a public meeting in Larkana in response to the Pakistan Peoples Party’s gathering at Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi, his hometown, on Dec 27 to mark the 12th death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto.

Talking to journalists after a ceremony held in connection with the Quaid’s birthday at Public Secretariat in Commercial Market, the minister said: “If you’re arriving in Rawalpindi then I will hold a jalsa (public meeting) in your home ground. I am coming to Larkana to hold a political meeting and reply to your allegations.

“We are men of principles and we will not stop the PPP from holding its public meeting in Rawalpindi, but it is our right to hold a jalsa in Larkana.”

The minister said democracy without accountability was impossible. “The name of Imran Khan is Ehtesab Khan and he will not spare any corrupt element in the country,” he said.

He said the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government would complete its five-year term despite all the conspiracies being hatched against it.

Advises Bilawal to play carefully as being a young man he is not familiar with tactics of politics

He said the citizens of Rawalpindi had rejected the elements who were involved in money laundering. The opposition has never taken out a rally against inflation, he said.

Sheikh Rashid said that Indian premier Narendra Modi had fuelled terrorism in occupied Kashmir by imposing a curfew and killing innocent Kashmiris.

He said the Modi government had been trapped in the net which it spread for others by passing the controversial citizenship law.

“Founder of Pakistan Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had demanded a separate homeland for the Muslims because he knew that Hindus and Muslims cannot live together,” he said.

“The situation in India is so critical that people are raising slogans for separation,” he added.

He said the Indian army had been killing innocent Kashmiris, but the international community was silent.

He said India could create unrest on the borders but the Pakistan Army and government were fully prepared to give a befitting response.

The minister advised PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to play carefully as being a young man he was not familiar with tactics of politics.

Commenting on Mr Bhutto-Zardari’s comment that he was an owner of five companies in his childhood, Sheikh Rashid said a man of 23 years was no more a child.

In reply to a question, he said the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and PPP had plundered the national wealth mercilessly and now the government would make them accountable.

In reply to another question, he said the official legal team would clarify the government’s position about the cases against PML-N leaders Rana Sanaullah and Ahsan Iqbal.

He said the federal cabinet, in consultation with all the relevant quarters, had unanimously refused to remove the name of Maryam Nawaz from the Exit Control List.

The railways minister said he wanted to speak on some critical national issues, but Prime Minister Imran Khan stopped him from doing so.

He said the government respected the decisions of the courts. “Only one sentence of special court’s judgement [about dragging and hanging retired Gen Pervez Musharraf’s body] has bothered me.”

He said the government had started a special train for Christian sisters and brothers on the eve of Christmas. He said the people travelled even on roof of train due to space shortage.

Sheikh Rashid said the second women university had been established in Rawalpindi and the ML-1 project would also be completed under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan. With the completion of the ML-1 project, travel time between Rawalpindi and Karachi would come down to just eight hours, he added.

Published in Dawn, December 26th, 2019