ISLAMABAD: A session of the National Assembly, which will begin on Friday (today), may witness heated debates over the rape and murder of a minor girl in Kasur this week and the government’s failure to table the Fata (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) reforms bill which seeks merger of the tribal areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It is likely that members on the opposition benches would condemn the Punjab government for its failure to prevent cases of sexual violence against children in the province.

Opposition parties, including the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), Jamaat-i-Islami, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), have strongly condemned the barbaric incident in Kasur.

They have demanded exemplary punishment for the people involved in such incidents, especially dozens of such incidents that occurred in the jurisdiction of two specific police stations of Kasur.

Opposition leaders condemn performance of Punjab govt, call for action against police officials involved in protesters’ killing

The PTI has submitted an adjournment motion to the National Assembly Secretariat, demanding a debate on the recent incident in Kasur and other cases of sexual violence against children.

The body of Kasur’s girl, six-year-old Zainab who was murdered before being sexually assaulted, was found in a garbage bin on Tuesday. She had been missing five days earlier.

According to the Punjab government, this is the 12th such incident reported from the jurisdiction of two specific police stations of Kasur.

In reaction to the recent incident, the Punjab government suspended Kasur’s district police officer.

The PTI’s adjournment motion demanded suspension of the normal agenda of the lower house. The party called for withdrawing hundreds of police personnel deployed for the security of VIPs, saying they should provide security to the common man.

It condemned the killing of two protesters in Kasur on Wednesday and called for exemplary punishment for those police officials who were allegedly involved in the incident.

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah on Thursday demanded resignation of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and provincial Law Minister Rana Sanaullah for their failure to prevent abduction and killing of girls in Kasur.

Condemning the killing of the two protesters reportedly by the firing of police in Kasur, he said action should be taken against officials involved in the incident. Had police personnel responsible for the killings in 2014’s Model Town incident been given exemplary punishment, Kasur-like incidents could have been avoided, he added.

Another PPP leader, Chaudhry Manzoor, criticised the performance of the Punjab government and said the chief minister had failed to take action against the people involved in crimes against children.

MQM leader retired Col Tahir Hussain Mashhadi submitted an adjournment motion to the Senate Secretariat to discuss the Kasur incidents.

He demanded that the government take immediate measures for the prevention of crimes against children. He was of the view that the government and police must accept the blame for not planning any strategy which could provide protection to children. “Gruesome murders and rapes of minors both boys and girls continue unabated and inhuman monsters operate at will with impunity all over the country,” said.

The opposition may continue its protest against the government’s failure to table the Fata reforms bill in the house. The opposition boycotted the whole previous session of the National Assembly on the issue.

Published in Dawn, January 12th, 2018