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MUZAFFARABAD, April 20: Introduction of two private bills in the National Assembly seeking ban on Pakistanis with dual nationality or foreign holdings to assume public offices has drawn flaks from an Azad Jammu and Kashmir minister who represents the UK-based Kashmiri expatriates in the state legislature.
Mehmood Riaz, holding the portfolios of information, environment and information technology, termed the bills a “deep conspiracy against the country's economy which amounted to challenging the patriotism of overseas Pakistanis” and expressed the hope that the parliamentarians would reject them by a thumping majority.“At a time when the world has become a global village and Pakistanis and Kashmiris are making a foray into the politics of the countries they had moved to in search of livelihood introduction of such bills is detrimental to the interests of Pakistan and its people,” he said, while talking to a group of senior correspondents here.
The AJK information minister pointed out that hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis settled abroad, particularly in the Middle East, Europe, United States and Canada, were also remitting billions of dollars every year and barring them from participation in political activities back home would gradually alienate them from the country.
He said as had also been pointed out by some prudent parliamentarians on Tuesday, one of the bills, if enacted, would seriously affect the students who were bound to open bank accounts in the countries where they would move to pursue their higher studies.Mr Riaz, who is himself associated with the Labour Party, pointed out that currently there were four peers of Pakistani and Kashmiri origin in the House of Lords and six MPs in the House of Commons in UK.
“One of them, Baroness Saeeda Warsi, has also been appointed as cabinet minister and chairperson of the ruling Conservative Party, something which has made the Pakistanis and Kashmiris raise their heads high with pride,” he said.
