Times Report
KARACHI: Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Sohail Afridi has said that the Constitution and the law are being openly violated in the country. “On one side national assets are being sold, and on the other side justice has been reduced to a commodity and court orders are being openly thrown into the dustbin. The nation’s most popular leader remains in jail and the Constitution is being trampled through the use of force”, he said and made it clear that unless the judiciary is free and the lawyers stand united, Pakistan cannot move forward as a constitutional and democratic state.
He expressed these views while addressing the Sindh High Court Bar Association, during his visit to Sindh. The final day of the visit began with a visit to the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam, where the Chief Minister offered Fateha and laid a floral wreath at the grave of the Founder of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Senior leaders of Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf including Party Secretary General Barrister Salman Akram Raja, PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh, Umar Dar, Rehana Dar, Naim Haider Panjutha, Meena Khan Afridi, Shafi Jan, Shaukat Basra, Muhammad Ali Baloch and other were also present on the occasion. In his remarks recorded in the visitors’ book at the mausoleum, Chief Minister said that the ideas and principles of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah continue to serve as a guiding light for Pakistan, and that the nation and state institutions must follow the principles laid down by the Founder of Pakistan to steer the country back onto the constitutional path. Later, the Chief Minister, along with the PTI leadership, reached the Sindh High Court, where he was warmly received by the Sindh High Court Bar Association. Addressing the Bar, the Chief Minister said he was pleased to speak directly to the legal fraternity. He described the people of Sindh as brave, courageous and hospitable, but expressed regret that the incumbant Sindh government had not treated guests appropriately and that even the dignity of Sindhi cultural symbols such as the Ajrak and Sindhi cap had been compromised. The Chief Minister said that today the Constitution and the rule of law were being violated, state institutions were being deliberately weakened and the entire country was suffering as a result. He said that key national institutions such as Pakistan International Airlines were being sold, and even justice had been turned into something that could be bought and sold, whereas justice should never be for sale. He reiterated that three judges of the Islamabad High Court had granted him permission to meet Imran Khan, but a jail superintendent ignored and discarded the court order. He said this was not a personal insult but a blatant disregard for the judiciary and the sacred profession of lawyers. The Chief Minister said that the Constitution of Pakistan guarantees fundamental rights to every citizen, but when all constitutional and legal avenues are closed, there is no option left except to protest. He said that after assuming office as Chief Minister he had written letters to the Prime Minister, the Chief Minister of Punjab and the Chief Justice of Pakistan, but no meeting was arranged and no response was received at any level. The Chief Minister said that Imran Khan is the most popular leader of Pakistan and is leading the struggle for real freedom. He added that unless lawyers stand up, the judiciary cannot be free. He praised the historic role of the lawyers of the Sindh High Court, saying that in every major constitutional movement in the country, the lawyers of Sindh have remained in the front line. Addressing the lawyers, he said that if a movement is launched for the supremacy of the Constitution and the rule of law, he himself would stand in the front. Talking about the country’s economic situation, the Chief Minister said that Pakistan was facing a severe economic crisis, with young people being forced to leave the country, more than 45 percent of the population living below the poverty line and unemployment rising to alarming levels, while the rulers were only concerned about looting national wealth instead of addressing the problems of the people. He said that Imran Khan had conveyed the message of a street movement and that he had brought this message to the people, especially to the lawyers, so that they could unite and struggle for the restoration of the Constitution and the rule of law. PTI Secretary General Barrister Salman Akram Raja, along with the presidents of the Sindh High Court Bar Association and the Karachi Bar Association, also addressed the ceremony and pledged that the lawyers’ movement would continue until the Constitution was restored in its original form. After the event, Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi, along with other party leaders, visited the residence of PTI Karachi Division Senior Vice President Faheem Khan, where he met PTI Karachi President Raja Azhar, General Secretary Arsalan Khalid, PTI Sindh spokesperson Muhammad Ali Baloch and other leaders. He also met PTI activists who had endured imprisonment in political cases, as well as representatives of the Insaf Lawyers Forum and the Women’s Wing. The Chief Minister also visited the central office of Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen to meet religious scholars and later addressed party workers at the residence of former Sindh Assembly member Dr Saeed Afridi.
Leave a Reply