Law Minister has objections to ISI’s political wing

While lauding the Inter-Services Intelligence for its role in thwarting and curtailing terrorists’ activities, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah Khan has said people, including himself, can raise objections to the political wing of the ISI.
“People have serious objections to the ISI’s political wing, but no one can deny agency’s role for anti-terrorist work,” he said, while responding to a Call Attention Notice of Opposition Leader Ch Zaheer-ud-Din regarding bomb blast at the shrine of Hazrat Baba Fareed Gunj-e-Shakar (RA).
To a supplementary question of the Mover about the ISI's working in checking terrorism, Rana Sana clearly stated that the ISI was the best intelligence agency of the country and had played very important role in controlling terrorists’ activities. “The working of the ISI’s political wing can be controversial for others as this is true for me as well, but no one can raise finger at its anti-terrorism tasks,” he observed, while informing the house that security had been increased at the Shrine.
Later, Rana Sana and Minister Food Ch Abdul Ghafoor assured the House that the government was making efforts for resolving all issues concerning price-hike, and law and order, which were top priorities of the present rulers. They said this in their separate windup speeches after general discussions ‘Price-hike of essential commodities’ and law and order, which were kept pending from the last session, which ended in the last week of October this year.
Rana Sana attributed rise in crime to energy crises, and resultant closure of factories and industries causing unemployment and economic frustration. “Some forces create problems for the elected regimes, but when the former come to power, they stay for over one decade,” he said sans naming the Army. He also mentioned that the police was being prepared better for controlling crime. “Rs 50 billion have been allocated for the department, which was not very sufficient as out of this Rs 42b are paid as salaries and around Rs 4b are spent to pay for other utilities, while the rest of the amount is spent on the police welfare and training,” he added, while admitting that there was a lot to be done for bringing change in Police Culture. “Besides training, latest weapons are being provided to cops, so that they can perform their duties more efficiently,” he mentioned, while enlisting achievements of the police.
Abdul Ghafoor said the government was facilitating growers to the maximum extent, and his govt was aware of the problems being faced by the agriculture sector.
Earlier, Ch Zaheer bitterly criticised the Treasury for its alleged failure in controlling and curtailing terrorists’ activities. He mentioned other projects as failures of the government.