ABBOTTABAD, Aug 30: Baba Haider Zaman, chief of Tehrik-i-Suba Hazara, has criticised the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments for ignoring the demand of the people of the Hazara region for a separate province.

In a statement issued here on Thursday, Baba Haider Zaman maintained that the PPP, ANP and other political parties had ignored the people of Hazara.

He warned President Asif Ali Zardari and other leaders not to play with sentiments of millions of people of Hazara.

He said that if voice of people of Hazara was not heeded, they would take steps to realise their demand.

Baba Zaman said that creation of Hazara province was an administrative matter, adding commission formed for creation of provinces in Punjab was set up on political grounds.

He also lashed out at PML-N for not taking up the issue of Hazara province seriously, saying all the political parties would be made accountable for their ‘dubious role’.

HAZARA QAUMI MAHAZ: Hazara Qaumi Mahaz (HQM) president Khursheed Ali Hazarvi has expressed concern over setting aside the issue of Hazara province.

This he said while presiding over a meeting of the organisation on Wednesday. The meeting was largely attended by the central and provincial office-bearers.

He said that the HQM was the first organisation to raise the issue of the creation of a separate Hazara province 20 years ago, adding that they would continue to struggle for achieving the rights of the people of Hazara.

Others who spoke on the occasion included senior vice-president Saleem Lodhi, Abdur Razzaq Khan Jadoon, Sardar Tariq Waseem, Malik Masoodur Rehman advocate, Zulqarnain Jadoon, Mohammad Amir, Sajjad Abbasi and Babu Basher.