MINISTER for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, who has been vocal in defending the Government on the tricky political front and highlighting policies, programmes and performance of the Government, has thrown a challenge to PTI leader Imran Khan to name the “agencies and their officials” who were involved in politics and gave him the guarantee that the incumbent Chief Election Commissioner would toe his line.
Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on Friday, she regretted the way the PTI leadership was maligning national institutions to escape accountability, adding that Imran wanted persons like Javed Iqbal to head all state institutions like Election Commission, FIA and NAB.
The points raised by the Minister deserve to be taken seriously by all including PTI leadership as the tendency of bringing institutions into disrepute for the sake of self-centred political motives and agenda is harming the country in many ways.
Unfortunately, wild allegations are levelled against national institutions and their leadership based merely on assumptions or falsified facts, which stand exposed with the passage of time as we witnessed in the case of ’35 punctures’ that turned out to be mere propaganda or the latest hue and cry about so-called foreign-inspired conspiracy to bring about a regime change in Pakistan.
There is a growing impression that different narratives are being evolved and propagated just to pressurize institutions not to proceed against the party for its illegal and unconstitutional actions or allegations of corruption and wrong-doing as has been corroborated by the verdict of the ECP in foreign funding case.
Marriyum Aurangzeb was quite relevant in highlighting the twists being given by the PTI to the arrest of Shahbaz Gill on charges of sedition despite the fact that the remarks were made by him deliberately and in a live television programme, leaving no doubt about the substance of the allegations.
In this case too, different allegations have been levelled that the Government believes are aimed at obstructing the course of investigation including allegations of physical and sexual abuse.
The allegations of physical torture were not only denied by Punjab Government’s Home Minister but also proved untrue when a team of highly qualified doctors carried out a comprehensive medical examination at PIMS.
Second medical examination has also been ordered by the court, which should also take care of allegations of sexual abuse and based on the outcome culprits should be booked or defamation proceedings initiated against those levelling allegations.
In addition, Islamabad Police has also invited all those having any evidence of physical torture to record their statements before a senior police officer.
All this has prompted the Information Minister to say that there was no sacred cow as far as equality before law is concerned and that action would be taken against all those guilty of wrong-doings.
We should have faith in our institutions and extend full cooperation to them if nothing wrong was committed.
