Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Both the establishment as well as the Sindh Rangers have asked the federal government to extend the Protection of Pakistan Act 2014 to take the Karachi operation and the war on terror to their logical end, sources told Daily Times.

According to the sources, the Interior Ministry and law enforcement agencies support the demand for extension of the Act, which is going to expire on July 15 on completion of its legal term of two years.

“It is a legal issue and we are considering various options to extend the Protection of Pakistan Act,” say the sources in the Law Ministry. The president may issue a new ordinance on the advice of the prime minister. A National Assembly session may be convened to pass the new legislation, the sources said.

“A legal cover to all law enforcement agencies, including the Sindh Rangers, is a must so that they can continue their work i.e. elimination of terrorists and the operation in Karachi,” the sources said.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan is also in favour of the extension of the Act. Khan is of the view that the Rangers and the intelligence agencies could not work independently without a legal cover, the sources said.

On expiry of the Protection of Pakistan Act on July 15, the Rangers or any other law enforcement agency would not be able to take any suspect into custody and detain him for 90 days.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif would chair a meeting on national security in a few days and the issue of the extension of the Protection of Pakistan Act would be discussed at this meeting, official sources said.

It may be mentioned here that the Anti-Terrorism Amendment Act 2014 has already expired and the government is considering amending it once again. The prime minister would take the final decision in this regard.