ISLAMABAD: Announcing the recovery of Shahbaz Taseer, son of slain former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer, from Balochistan, Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan on Tuesday reiterated the government’s commitment to root out terrorism from the country.
“The war against terrorism would be continue till the elimination of the last terrorist,” Nisar said while crediting the success to all political parties and armed forces who, he added, have rendered great sacrifices. Briefing Senate about National Action Plan, he said, “I have just received information regarding recovering of Salmaan Taseer’s son.” He said Shahbaz Taseer was recovered from Balochistan in a joint operation by law enforcement agencies. The operation was carried out on intelligence, and Balochistan IG has confirmed the release of Shahbaz, the minister maintained. He said efforts were underway to recover former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s son.
About the success in war on terrorism, Nisar said a united stance was the need of hour to eliminate terrorism from the country. Briefing Senate on National Action Plan and answering questions of the members of the House, Nisar said terrorism could only be eliminated with a national united stance and resilience. The minister called upon the federal and provincial governments to show unity and take bold stands in order to discourage terrorists.
He said out of the 20-point NAP agenda, 10 were related to provinces but he would not indulge in blame game, as it would only harm the country’s interests. Nisar informed the House that the implementation on 15 points of NAP was satisfactory and noted slow progress on five points. He said there was progress on madrassa reforms and underlined the importance of taking provincial governments on board on this particular issue. The interior minister said the present government has taken steps to make National Counter-Terrorism Authority (NACTA) viable and an effective organisation. Funds have been released and officials appointed, but mostly technical persons were required for it.
The minister said the previous regimes did nothing to make NACTA functional but the incumbent regime is committed to making it functional and rid the country of militancy, and noted that the situation is returning to normalcy. He claimed NACTA has played an important role in the war against terrorism, which was why incidents of terrorism have decreased considerably across the country. Nisar said the government took various initiatives and put banned organisations in schedule-IV, so as to properly monitor their activities.
Answering a question, the minister said Rangers could not arrest 79,000 people in Sindh nor had it claimed to, saying that this figure was of a combined list given by the Sindh government and includes people arrested by both police and Rangers. The minister also confirmed sharing intelligence with India, however he added that more intelligence has been shared with Afghanistan than India with regard to illegal border crossing. He said that according to the reports, 10 to 15 people have been reported to cross the border illegally. The minister also added that in the past, Pakistan has been blamed for illegal border crossings.
The interior minister said actions of some non-state actors become a nuisance for Pakistan and its institutions. “Efforts are afoot at both civil and military levels to get rid of such non-state actors,” he added. Nisar also claimed that Daesh was not present in Pakistan, adding that it was a militant outfit that was present in Middle East. “Don’t make it high profile. There is no existence of Daesh in Pakistan,” he added. Nisar said some groups were carrying out nefarious activities in Pakistan using the name of Daesh. He revealed that all the militant outfits were being targeted by the security forces.
About Maulana Abdul Aziz, the interior minister said 33 cases were registered against him and he got free in 28. In three cases he was fined. The minister said the previous regime provided him security but the current government withdrew it. Answering a question, the minister said the government has taken action against international NGOs and madrassas and asked both to register with the government. Adviser to PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz informed Senate that there was no fact in rumours that Pakistan would sell nuclear weapons to Saudi Arabia. He termed the reports incorrect. However, the adviser said there was some pressure from US to reduce nuclear weapons, but Pakistan would not oblige because it was a matter of national security.
