Daily Times

Leader of Opposition in Senate Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan on Wednesday expressed his disappointment on the security situation in Pakistan and said that Quetta terror attack was a complete intelligence failure.

In a conversation with veteran journalist Arif Nizami, the Pakistan People’s Party leader said, “All the responsibility lies with Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan under the National Action Plan (NAP).”

According to Aitzaz, the buck stops at the interior minister as he is responsible for internal security of the country. “NAP is not being implemented as banned outfits are free to enter the federal capital and hate speech is also rampant.”

Nizami said that the interior minister and secretary interior do not even talk to each other while the country is passing through a crucial juncture. “I wonder how the security affairs of the country are being run.”

Quoting a statement of Chaudhry Nisar in which he said that there are 26 intelligence agencies operating in Pakistan, Aitzaz questioned the functioning of these agencies.

“The occurrence of such incidents is a big question mark on the functioning of these agencies. A strong coordination among the intelligence agencies is required to avoid such incidents in the future,” he said.

Critics have often argued about the implementation of National Action Plan (NAP) in full letter and spirit. The 20-point action plan was again brought into question after the suicide attack at the emergency ward of Quetta’s Civil Hospital.

The attack, claimed by Islamic State and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group of the Taliban militants, left some 72 people dead and over 100 others wounded. Two journalists were also among those killed in Monday’s attack.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Wednesday also chaired a high-level meeting to discuss implementation of the National Action Plan. Minister for Interior Chaudhry Nisar and Adviser on National Security Naseer Janjua briefed the prime minister in this regard.

The 20-point National Action Plan was announced by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a televised speech after the Army Public School massacre in Peshawar on December 16, 2014.

Although reports show a decline in terrorist attacks in Pakistan, after the launch of counter-terrorism operations post-APS, still the country faces threats from extremist elements.