Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Three federal ministers on Saturday issued advisories to the Opposition, with one advising it to delay their movement owing to the Coronavirus epidemic. Another warned of a crackdown another reminding the Opposition to remain within the confines of the law. “There may be [a] crackdown, there may be corona, there may be incidents of terrorism,” Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid said in his now customary Saturday press conference.
The minister said Prime Minister Imran Khan gave a “befitting” reply to the Opposition in his speech yesterday to the Insaf Lawyer’s Forum. He noted that PM Imran has said categorically that he will not give any NRO to Opposition leaders.
The minister claimed that the Pakistan Democratic Movement, the platform on which Opposition parties have gathered to oust the government, is moving towards a “politics of violence”.
Hitting out at PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Rashid alleged that the JUI-F leader was a “respectable man” but wanted to play the religion card. He added that the maulana has been “used all his life for the religious card”.
The minister also claimed that the next four months were “very important”, adding that the army was standing behind the democratic government.
“The Pakistan Army stands behind the civilian government so that no man can take out WikiLeaks, Dawnleaks or any other leaks,” Rashid said.
Talking about rumours about the arrest of PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz, Rashid said that he did not have any knowledge about it.
He added that the police should investigate the treason cases against PML-N leaders, and may release the ones who are found ‘not guilty’.
The minister reiterated that PM Imran Khan did not have any knowledge about the sedition case against PML-N leaders, saying that “it happened at a very low level”. Federal Minister for Planning Asad Umar separately said that no one will be allowed to break the law in the name of democracy.
