KARACHI: Opposition’s bid to move resolution on US raids fails: PA resumes debate on dams
By Habib Khan Ghori
KARACHI, Jan 19: The joint opposition in the Sindh Assembly on Thursday staged a token walkout to register its protest against the recent US air strikes in Bajaur Agency and the Pakistan army’s operation in Balochistan.
The issue was raised by Mr Saifullah Dharejo of PPP through a point of order.
The day’s proceedings commenced at 11:40am as the house reassembled after a 19-day recess in the requisitioned session to initiate a general discussion on the issue of water reservoirs. Jam Mehtab Hussain, Dr Mehreen Bhutto, Nasrullah Khan, Abdul Rehman Rajput, Jam Saifullah Khan Dharejo, Makhdoom Jameel-uz-Zaman, Sassui Palijo and other opposition members had submitted adjournment motions on the subject.
The speaker gave floor to Leader of the House Dr Arbab Rahim to make a statement under Rule 215 on the water reservoirs issue. As soon as the chief minister referred to President Musharraf’s address to the nation, many opposition members stood up and drew the chair’s attention to the order of the day and demanded that the general discussion on their adjournment motions be started.
The speaker reminded them that in the morning session, he had asked the opposition to start the debate on the issues, for which the session had been requisitioned, but they preferred to take up the question hour first. “Now when I have given the floor to the chief minister, let him make his statement first,” he told the opposition benches.
His remarks led to the restoration of order and the chief minister went ahead with his statement. When he uttered that the construction of Bhasha Dam had also been favoured by the opposition, the opposition benches shouted ‘No… No….’
At one stage, some opposition members, including Saifullah Dharejo, Ayaz Soomro and Zahid Ali Bhurgari, tried to interrupt the chief minister’s speech. The speaker asked them to maintain discipline and even warned to prorogue the session if they did not heed his orders.
Soon after the chief minister completed his statement, Rafique Engineer of the PPP rose on a point of order, and said that the federal cabinet had decided to build Bhasha and Munda dams, although Sindh had reservations over the construction of more dams on the Indus. By taking decisions on key issues without the Council of Common Interests having been set up, the cabinet was going extra-constitutional, he maintained.
The speaker ruled his point ‘out of order’, saying that it was not a point of order and gave the floor to Hameedullah Khan of the MMA who sought permission to move a resolution out of turn by relaxing the rules under Rule 211 to condemn the US raid in which 18 civilians were killed.
He pointed out that the US air raids on Pakistani territory were without any provocation and left many innocent people dead. He said that in the resolution he wanted to move, he had represented the feelings of the people of Sindh and Pakistan. He regretted that the government had not lodged any protest with the US. “It is an issue of the security of our borders, and unity and integrity of the country.” He welcomed the treasury benches to move the resolution jointly as they would agree that foreign troops had violated the country’s borders and they should not be allowed to carry out raids in our country.
Law Minister Chaudhry Iftikhar opposed the motion for granting permission to the MMA member for moving his resolution. He recalled that the people of Pakistan had condemned the raids and the foreign office had also taken up the issue with the US and recorded its protest against the incident. The Prime Minister, he said, had also stated that he would take up the matter with the US administration during his visit. Therefore, he added, it was not necessary to take up the issue in the house at this stage.
The minister amid slogans of ‘shame… shame…’ by opposition members, also tried to justify the action in Balochistan by saying that it was not an operation, rather an action against a particular group of saboteurs. He said a similar action had been taken by the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in the past.
After he concluded his arguments, the speaker put the motion to vote which was defeated with 35 in favour and 54 against. Opposition members, however, continued to shout ‘shame… shame…’ during and after the vote.
Earlier, soon after fateha for those who died during the recess in the session, and for those who were killed in Bajaur and Balochistan, Saifullah Dharejo of PPP (who was acting as leader of the opposition in the absence of Nisar Ahmad Khuhro), Makhdoom Jamil-uz-zaman and Syed Murad Ali Shah, raised a point of order against US air raids in Bajour and Pakistan army operation in Balochistan. Mr Dharejo led the token walkout by the opposition benches.
Minister for Mines and Minerals Irfanullah Marwat asked that why those now in opposition had raised their voice against the army action ordered by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in Balochistan and by Benazir Bhutto (against the MQM) in Sindh.
