Daily Times

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Khurshid Shah on Wednesday said Article 6 of the constitution can be invoked against Prime Minister Imran Khan over his recent controversial statement in Tehran.

“The PTI government has committed several serious blunders, which are enough for their removal. However, for the sake of democracy, we will not demand so at this stage,” the PPP leader said while speaking in the National Assembly. “Prime minister’s statement during his recent official visit to Iran that Pakistani soil is being used for terror activities is enough to invoke Article 6, which pertains to treason, against him,” he said, and added that no one can even think of giving such a statement against his own country.

Shah spoke after former finance minister Asad Umar delivered a rather critical speech stating that ‘mismanagement’ during the PPP’s previous tenure was to blame for the financial woes of Pakistan.

Earlier, PTI leader Asad Umar came down hard on the PPP and explained the ‘weaknesses’ during the five-year tenure of the party from 2008-13. He said inflation rate remained at 12.8 per cent in PPP government’s tenure and budget deficit stood between 7 to 8.8 per cent. Umar admitted that Pakistan’s growth rate was not at the level which was predicted, but termed heavy repayments against loans as main cause of the low growth rate. “Heavy repayments of loans soon after coming in to power forced the government to take some hard decisions,” he said.

Talking a jibe at Bilawal Bhutto, Asad Umar said it seems the PPP leader is unaware that overall growth rate remained at 2.8 per cent in their tenure of government, adding that it was recorded at 0.4 per cent in the first year of the PPP government rule. The PTI leader admitted that inflation has increased in the tenure of the incumbent government, but claimed that the same had been recorded at 12.8 per cent in the PPP’s tenure. “Now when money is being recovered from faloda wala, Swiss and other fake bank accounts, such things will happen … we can understand,” he contented.

Commenting on the change of finance minister, Umar recalled that four finance ministers were changed in PPP’s tenure. “If this is the criteria to judge government’s performance, what PPP chairman will say about this fact?” he asked.

He said NAB and other courts were tightening noose around the opposition parties to hold them accountable for their assets abroad. “This is the reason that the opposition has intensified its protest against the government. But, the government is not doing it … relevant authorities are closing in. National Accountability Bureau is doing it. The courts are doing it. Fake accounts keep surfacing. Under these circumstances, of course, the PPP will be worried, and expressing that worry is their right,” Umar said. “When your Swiss accounts are in danger, when your palaces in Surrey, your towers in Dubai, your Park Lane flats are in danger, you are bound to worry,” he added.

Later speaking in the House, Khurshid Shah said Umar should have stayed to listen to his reply, adding that hurling accusations is easy but it is beyond doubt that the prime minister removed him (Umar) for being ‘incompetent and inept’. “People are crying due to the burden of inflation owing to the incompetence of the current government. It is for the first time in the parliamentary history that opposition parties have offered cooperation to the government to fix the economy,” he said. “When the PPP assumed power in 2008, economies across the globe were facing recession but our government stabilized the economy, provided jobs to the people and, above all, rooted out terrorism and hoisted the national flag in Swat,” he added.

The PPP leader said there is no comparison between the PPP and the PTI as the latter has taken charge of office without facing any big challenges, while the former had to cope with enormous challenges including a tattered economy and terrorism. “On the one hand, the PTI blames the PPP and the PML-N for the shoddy state of affairs of economy, but on the other hand, they have brought in PPP’s finance minister (Dr Hafeez Sheikh),” he wondered.

Meanwhile, responding to a calling attention notice, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan said the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has provided relief assistance of over Rs 204 million to the flood affectees in Balochistan. He said the NDMA has been directed to devise a robust response mechanism in order to effectively cope with any disaster-like situation in future.

Responding to a calling attention notice, Parliamentary Secretary for Commerce Shandana Gulzar Khan said Pakistan’s exports to India have shrunk significantly after the Pulwama incident due to imposition of 200% duties on Pakistani products by the Indian government. She said Pakistan used to export 98% of its dried dates to India and this export has also got affected due to the enhanced duties. “We have also increased duties on certain Indian products. Meanwhile, we are exploring other markets to export our dates,” she added.

Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari laid before the House ‘The Zainab Alert, Response and Recovery Bill, 2019’, to make provisions for raising alert, response and recovery of missing and abducted children.

Responding to the points of BNP leader Akhtar Mengal about the problems of Balochistan province, Mazari said a bill on enforced disappearances has been drafted and sent to the law ministry. She said she has also taken Prime Minister Imran Khan into confidence on the bill and expressed the confidence that work on it will be expedited after his China visit.

Akhtar Mengal regretted that the government could not take any step regarding the six-point agreement reached with his party. “There have been terrorists attacks in Balochistan, Hazara Community has been targeted and the law enforcement agencies have arrested small children and labeled them as terrorists,” he claimed, and also showed some photos in the House.

The House will now meet today (Thursday) morning at 11 am.