ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira on Tuesday said that the parliament is the supreme institution in the country as it represents will of the people.

“There is no doubt that the Supreme Court is the apex court in the country, but when we talk about supreme institution, the parliament is the supreme institution as per the constitution,” said the information minister while speaking to media representatives after attending a certificate distribution ceremony among students of institutions working under Wafaq-ul-Madaris.

“It is the parliament which has power to make, amend or abrogate the constitution. Similarly, the parliament has the right to abolish any institution. In fact, the parliament is mother of all institutions,” he added.

The minister said the government, from the day one, is saying that all institutions of the country should work within their constitutional domain.

Kaira said that politicians have always been subjected to media trial even before court verdicts are announced against allegations levelled against them and their public image is tarnished by one-sided talk shows and columns.

He said that the institutions are not built in days and targeting institutions was not in the national interest.

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has a very bitter experience but it has never targeted any institution of the country, said the minister.

Commenting on upcoming general elections, he said that there was no chance of delay in the elections as the government and the parliament have the mandate for completing five-year terms of the assemblies, adding that any delay in elections will undo the credit being earned by the parliament and the political parties.

Moreover, the minister also said that in the presence of free media, independent judiciary and vibrant civil society, no government can consider postponement of elections.

Media in the country is free and the government has no intention to curb it, he said.

Replying to a question, Kaira said that the statements of the Army chief and the chief justice were not against each other.

Earlier during the ceremony, the information minister stressed the need for promoting true Islamic values of peace, tolerance and religious harmony in the country.

He said that today, some elements are trying to impose their creeds on others by force, instead of using logic.

Kaira clarified that seminaries were not a problem, but some people were misusing the seminaries and it was the responsibility of the society to expose them and bring them to book.