ISLAMABAD, March 2: The federal cabinet has condemned Thursday’s bomb blast in Karachi as “a dastardly act of terrorism” but expressed confidence that it would not affect US President George Bush’s visit to Pakistan which would go ahead as planned.

The cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday condoled the death of four people, including a US diplomat, in the blast and expressed sympathies with scores of those injured. The meeting reiterated the government’s resolve to curb terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

It directed security agencies and the provincial government to make all-out efforts to arrest the culprits and award them exemplary punishment.

The prime minister said the culprits who had carried out the bombing would not escape the writ of law.

As a result of Rawalpindi-Islamabad coming in Zone-3 (minor to moderate to damage) instead of zone-2 (moderate to severe damage) in the latest seismic report, the cabinet allowed construction of high-rise buildings in Islamabad subject to application of revised building parameters.

In a landmark decision the cabinet approved transfer of oil regulatory functions, including pricing of oil products to the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, in an effort to allay public fears about unchecked increase in oil prices.

Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao briefed the cabinet on the current law and order situation in the country and said the government had earmarked places where demonstrations and rallies could take place.

Health Minister Naseer Khan briefed the cabinet about the latest situation following an outbreak of bird flu in Charsadda and Abbottabad. He said there was little chance of the avian virus spreading because all arrangements had been made to combat the threat.

Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri briefed the cabinet members about actions taken by the Foreign Office in the wake of publication of blasphemous caricatures of the Holy Prophet (PBUH).

He mentioned a joint demarche to the Danish government in the first week of October demanding legal action against the newspaper. A letter was jointly sent by six other Muslim states’ ambassadors to the Danish prime minister on October 21 and press briefings were held for the media in November, January and February.

He also said the matter had been taken up at the UN, OIC, human rights forums, summoning envoys on reprinting of derogatory sketches in Norway, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, etc.

Later Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told reporters it would be premature to blame any individual or organisation for the Karachi blast but pointed out that a breakthrough had been reported in the investigation with the help of film cameras installed at the site of the blast.

To a query about the US-India nuclear pact, the information minister said without prejudice to what the two countries had agreed on, Pakistan would expect its share when Mr Bush arrived here and talked to President General Pervez Musharraf.

In response to another query with regard to the Muslim world’s resentment against publication of blasphemous sketches, the minister said President Musharraf would take up the issue with the US and seek Mr Bush’s help in adoption of a law by the UN banning blasphemy of any prophet.

He refused to link the Karachi blast with the upcoming visit of Mr Bush, adding that it was certainly the handiwork of the enemies of Islam, Pakistan and whoever else could not see the country prospering.

He said security arrangements for the US president’s visit were foolproof and denied reports about sealing of the federal capital on the day of the visit. “President Bush’s visit will take place without paralysing the twin cities or cordoning them off, as was erroneously reported,” said the minister.

Mr Ahmed said that Mr Bush’s visit was “a historic event” which would bring about positive changes in the region. He hoped that Pakistan would get its share in nuclear energy concessions which the US had agreed with India.

With regard to the US president’s position on the solution of Kashmir issue, he said Mr Bush had discussed this issue even before embarking on his South Asia tour and has reiterated his confidence in New Delhi that Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Musharraf were competent to resolve this issue.

He said the cabinet had allowed the opposition to hold peaceful demonstrations at appointed venues in the four provinces, but would not allow anyone to take the law into their hands.

In reply to a question with regard to Afghanistan’s allegations of cross-border infiltration, the minister said that President Musharraf had correctly advised the Afghan President Hamid Karzai to put his house in order before telling him that Pakistan was taking steps to put its own house in order.

Islamabad, he said, had deployed 70,000 armed personnel to man the porous Pakistan-Afghan border and Kabul should also play its part in defending its borders against infiltration.

Asked for his comments on the latest discovery about former prime minister Benazir Bhutto’s assets and money in Spain, the minister said: “Very soon Ms Bhutto is going to be declared as one of the most corrupt and wealthiest persons of the world”. About PML(Nawaz) leader Nawaz Sharif’s sojourn to Geneva, he said the former prime minister was free to move anywhere in the world because he held a Pakistani passport, but he could not enter Pakistan under the deal that he had signed with the government.