Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution condemning the execution of Bangladesh leader Motiur Rahman Nizami and asked the international community to take notice of violations of human rights by the Bangladeshi government.

The hanging is a violation of the agreement signed in 1974 by Pakistan, Bangladesh and India that the war issue would not be reopened in future. The resolution expressed serious concerns over hanging of Nizami and punishment to 14 other people in cases, which took place before the creation of Bangladesh. Recently, the international community called into question the restrictions the Bangladeshi government imposed on the courts, the resolution said. Nizami has been executed for honouring the constitution of Pakistan.

The resolution demanded that the government of Pakistan take appropriate steps to stop executions in Bangladesh on political grounds. It asked the government of Pakistan to raise the issue at the international forum and with friendly countries to stop executions of politicians in Bangladesh. Federal Minister Rana Tanveer presented the resolution, which was passed by the house in the absence of the opposition members who were on a strike over the Panama leaks.

Earlier, on points of order, Sahibzada Tariqullah, Shaista Pervaiz and Shah Mahmood Qureshi condemned the execution of Nizami, leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami in Bangladesh. They said the execution was a violation of the agreement signed by Bangladesh, India and Pakistan in 1974. They were of the view that the execution was a judicial murder and violation of human rights.

Nizami, president of the Jamaat-e-Islami, was hanged at Dhaka’s Central Jail late on Tuesday after the top court upheld his death sentence for his alleged involvement in the massacre of intellectuals during the 1971 war. At the outset of the proceedings, the National Assembly offered prayers for the departed soul.

JI leader Sahibzada Tariqullah said that Bangladesh punished the people who showed love for Pakistan during the 1971 war. He said that several people were in Bangladesh jails today on such charges. Mahmood Khan Achakzai proposed that a parliamentary committee should be formed on this issue. He said the committee should visit Bangladesh in coordination with the Foreign Office and hold talks on this issue.

Later, the opposition lawmakers staged a walkout from the House, saying that they would not sit in the House in the absence of the prime minister. Before they walked out, PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that opposition’s point of view was totally ignored at standing committees. If the government is not interested in listening to the opposition on important issues, there was no need to attend the meetings of the standing committees.

The chair suspended the proceedings of the House due to a lack of quorum pointed out by Hamidul Haq Khalil of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Later, the National Assembly passed three government bills. The minister for law and justice introduced the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils (Amendment) Bill, 2016, the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2016, the Islamabad High Court (Amendment) Bill, 2016 and the Civil Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2016 in the House. The chairman of the Standing Committee on Commerce presented the report of the committee on the State Life Insurance Corporation (Reorganization and Conversion) Bill, 2016.

The chairman of the Standing Committee on Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs, Statistics and Privatisation presented the reports of the committee on the Credit Bureaus (Amendment) Bill, 2016 and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2016.

The House passed the State Life Insurance Corporation (Reorganisation and Conversion) Bill, 2016, the Credit Bureaus (Amendment) Bill, 2016 and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The requirement of the Rule 123(2) was dispensed with to consider and pass these bills.

The chairman of the Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control presented the Periodical Report of the committee for the period of July to December 2015.

The House adopted a supplementary resolution moved by the minister for defence production, condemning the hanging of the JI Bangladesh chief.