An Interview with Pervaiz Rasheed: We will refrain from using force against people camping outside Parliament

An Interview with Pervaiz Rasheed: We will refrain from using force against people camping outside Parliament

An Interview with Pervaiz Rasheed: We will refrain from using force against people camping outside Parliament

Islamabad: The government will refrain from using force against people sitting outside Parliament and will follow its policy of restrain because Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT) and Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf (PTI) are using women and children as human shield and wish to get dead bodies and bloodshed out of their protests.

This was stated by Pervaiz Rasheed (Pervez Rasheed) Federal Minister of Information and Broadcasting in an interview with Agha Iqrar Haroon of Dispatch News Desk news agency here on Wednesday.

When asked about possibility of any conspiracy against Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) government reference to Model Town Lahore incident, he believed that there are certain indicators leading to such theories.

He was of the view that people of Pakistan have rejected an attempt to destabilize democracy within the country and have rejected those factors within the mainstream media and the politics who wish to spread anarchy in the country.

Federal Minister of Information, Mass-media Broadcasting  reemphasized his viewpoint that People who attacked Pakistan Television Headquarters and blocked transmission of State run television were technical people and by designed attacked and entered PTV transmission wing.

He said that attackers were instigated by the speeches of Dr. Tahirul Qadri and Imran Khan who directed them to attack government buildings.

His interview with Dispatch News Desk news agency is here under:

Question: Some former PTV officials claim that suspension of transmission of State run television was not the act of supporters of PTI or PAT but it was deliberately done by PTV authorities to malign Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri. Would you like to share with us what actually happened there?

Answer: Not true. This was planned attempt of those who are maligning Pakistan all over the world by sitting outside the parliament and camping there to give a message to the world that Pakistan is in a chaotic situation. People who attacked Pakistan Television (PTV) Headquarters and blocked transmission of State run television were technical people and by designed they attacked and entered PTV transmission wing.   After getting instruction from Tahirul Qadri, they spread all over the Red Zone. Some of them went to Prime Minister House while some of them attacked Pakistan Secretariat. One of these groups attacked PTV Headquarters from where State run Television broadcasted its live transmission.

I held meeting with PTV engineers who confirmed that some of attackers had technical knowhow and information about live transmission point and they were using technical terminologies while talking to each other. They reached On-Air transmission point and made the transmission Off Air. When PTV screen went black, Tahirul Qadri congratulated them and made a sign of victory by while standing at his container and the same time Imran Khan came on the roof of his container and was smiling and making victory sign.

Q: Have Pakistan Foreign Office ever contacted Canadian High Commission in Islamabad and complained about the conduct of Tahirul Qadri who is a Canadian national?

A: Tahirul Qadri has dual nationality so whenever he comes to Pakistan, he is a Pakistani and he must respect Pakistani laws, constitution and the Parliament. His unlawful acts should be dealt with Pakistani laws. Therefore Government of Pakistan did not complain with Canadian High Commission against Tahirul Qadri for his unlawful conduct.

Q: What is London Plan or London conspiracy? Did government have some credible information or tips about what was decided and planned in London against democracy in Pakistan?

A: We got information about London Plan through the statements of Tahirul Qadri and the statements of President of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf (PTI) Javed Hashmi who exposed secret meeting of Tahirul Qadri and Imran Khan held in London and Hashmi also shared his knowledge with media about this London Plan that was an attempt to destabilize Pakistan and to erode democracy and parliament of Pakistan. Javed Hashmi has leveled serious charges against the Chairman of his party Imran Khan and Chief of PAT Tahirul Qadri but both have failed to answer charges leveled by Javed Hashmi against them. We got knowledge about London Plan through allegations of Javed Hasmir and confirmation of Tahirul Qadri about his meeting with Imran Khan while PTI was categorically denied such meeting of both the leaders. Government has no more specific information about what was planned in London between them or among some others.

Q: Would you like to comment about ever-changing statements of MQM Chief Altaf Hussian during Long March and Azadi March and why he had supported these two marches very strongly and even decided to resign from parliament but then withdrew his position. Could he be a part of London Plan?

A: Altaf Hussian Sahib for a long time has been passing contradictory statements. At times he talks about strengthening democracy in Pakistan but at the same time he (Altaf Hussian) suggested formulas that are un-constitutional and un-democratic.

Q: Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) released a report on its website that indicated grave misconducts in electoral process of 2013 general elections. Now ECP claims that report posted on its website is not an official document and has nothing to do with ECP observations about elections. How is it possible that a non-official report could be uploaded on ECP website that indicated that entire election process of 2013 general elections was full of misconducts and full of irregularities?

A: ECP is an autonomous and independent institution. You should ask this question to ECP how such document that is not an official report was posted on its website.

Q: Did government of Pakistan that runs the State of the Pakistan has ever asked ECP about this incident because this report in question has morally and technically supported the allegations of Imran Khan that general elections 2013 were rigged?

A: ECP said that this report in question was actually one of many reports that were made by election observers and such reports are observations of election observers and experts who covered or followed 2013 general elections as observers and these observers gave their observations to ECP so ECP could formulate and device better system in next general elections to avoid such irregularities and these reports are not official reports of ECP. Now ECP has announced its special meeting on September 26, 2014 to review the entire issue and ECP is the best judge to come out the results how such report was posted on its web site at this juncture of time.

Q: Government arrested over 100 persons who were allegedly involved in violation of section 144 of CrPc but all these accused were released by the courts. After court’s observations while releasing these people, is there any utility left to keep imposing 144 in Islamabad?

A: Police arrested people under section 144 who were violating laws in Islamabad and many of them were those who are wanted by government in attacks on government buildings including Pakistan Secretariat and PTV Headquarters. They were arrested after their identification responsible for attacking government buildings. There identifications were result of footages that police got from CCTV cameras and these people should have been interrogated and investigation to reach real culprits who directed them to attack PTV building. However they were released by courts and government respects the orders of the courts. However, those people who have been identified as attackers in PTV building case shall be arrested and punished in accordance with the law.

Q: There are theories in the air that Model Town Lahore incident that resulted killing of 18 workers of Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT) by Lahore police was an act of conspiracy against sitting government of Pakistan Muslim League. What is your opinion about this theory?

A: There are certain indications in Joint Investigation Team (JIT) report that truly supports such theories because JIT confirmed that some persons who were not from police also used weapons and fired at mob. JIT also indicated that violence was initiated by some PAT workers. There is record available at social media including messages of PAT Chief Tahirul Qadri in which he was directing his workers for violence, talking about dead bodies, demanding his workers to die for him. Such messages were sent a night before Model Town incident. JIT was not allowed to go inside Minhajul Quran main building in Model Town and Tahirul Qadri did not cooperate with Judicial Commission and the JIT. PAT refrained from recording statements. All such events and happening narrate that there is something that is yet to come out. Time will tell us the reality about those who were behind Model Town incident because PAT is still holding women and children hostage inside Minhajul Quran building and still no government agency is allowed to go inside and investigate and interrogate people independently.   PAT is always using women and children as their human shield against the State of Pakistan and the government is avoiding using state power to avoid human disaster because when you use power, then causalities are inevitable.

Q: Do you think there are similarities between Maidan Euro Kiev Ukraine movement that compelled Ukraine President to run from country and camping village outside Parliament in Islamabad?

A: Situation in Pakistan is different because the whole parliament is standing behind the democracy and has rejected to allow anybody to remove sitting government through undemocratic and unparliamentarily modus operendi. Democracy has come up stronger out of this brutal attempt to marginalize the parliament and the Constitution. Moreover masses are not with these two groups and they (PTI and PAT) have failed in their attempt to ambush democratic institutions.

Q: What do you think who is behind this conspiracy against democracy?

A: Facts that are coming on surface indicate that those elements that were a part of system and were sharing power with former President Gen. Musharraf may plan this conspiracy. Some political and apolitical friends of Musharraf are now jobless and trying to find bbackdoorto enter into power that today lies only with legitimate democratic system.

Q: People had high expectations with the outcome of Joint Session of the parliament and were waiting that Session would come out with resolve and decision against those who are occupying roads outside the parliament however this Session is prorogued without giving any decision how to deal with such people who do not respect and believe in Constitution and the parliament and are sitting outside for the last 40 days. What is your opinion?

A: I believe the Parliament did the best role by rejecting unconstitutional and undemocratic demands of PAT and PTI. All political parties in Parliament except PTI have decided that Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif must not resign under pressure from certain powers that do not believe in Constitution, democracy and the parliament. Parliament has condemned attack on democracy in a joint resolution. These groups who are sitting outside parliament are using children and women as human shield. Parliament and the government believe that no such action should be taken that can harm human lives and can give dead bodies to two leaders who are sitting outside and waiting for bloodshed to make Pakistan and the democracy weaker. We averted such situation. We avoided to being trapped by Imran and Qadri in such conspiracy and we decided to refrain from using power because children and women are hostage of these two groups and they can be a part of causalities if ever any force is used.

Q: So how government and the parliament will come out from this situation that has halted progress in the country?

A: The best way of accountability of such elements is from masses—people of Pakistan and they have rejected their politics and their attempts to harm democracy in Pakistan. Today people of Pakistan are cursing them (PTI and PAT). Today people understand these elements are sitting outside Parliament to harm country not the government only. Every passing day is making them more accountable to people and every passing day is deciding against them and their politics. They have become jokers and people are laughing at them. This is the real accountability of them by the people of Pakistan.

Q: What is your opinion about the role mainstream media in dealing with this political situation?

Answer: This political situation is a big lesson for everyone including media and the politicians. People are intelligent and they are observing everything and make their opinions. People have seen who promote destabilization in Pakistan and promote negative and destructive politics. People have rejected those in media who crossed professional lines and became political forces against parliament, democracy and constitution. People reject certain media houses who have been promoting a new Pakistan that has no constitution, no parliament, and no democracy in its design promoted by PAT and PTI. Actually people have rejected such mainstream media that promotes anarchy in the country. This is positive sign and let people do accountability of such elements within politics and the media.