ISLAMABAD: Senior vice-chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi formally invited the us of a’s opposition parties on Thursday for consultations on the problem of creation of a South Punjab province as the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) rejected it within no time, terming it a political stunt and non-extreme pass.
The formal invitation become prolonged by way of Mr Qureshi via separate letters to Opposition Leader in the National Assembly and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, asking them to appoint their representatives for inclusion in a unique parliamentary committee to draft a constitutional change bill with consensus.
Mr Qureshi wrote the letter, a duplicate of that's to be had with Dawn, two days after advent of a non-public Constitution modification invoice in the Senate through PML-N’s Rana Mehmoodul Hassan looking for the creation of two new provinces -- South Punjab and Bahawalpur. Mr Qureshi has made this invoice as foundation of his letter to the competition leaders, but he did not mention that the bill seeks creation of two provinces and no longer just the one, that's the basic contention among the usa’s political events.
“Under what potential Shah Mehmood Qureshi Sahib has written the letter to Shehbaz Sharif?” asked PML-N’s secretary wellknown Ahsan Iqbal, when contacted to searching for his comments.
Mr Iqbal said if the invitation turned into being extended by the ruling celebration then its chairman was Imran Khan and if the government wanted to invite the opposition chief then the country’s high minister became also Imran Khan.
The PML-N chief said if Mr Qureshi had written the letter in his capability as the senior vice-chairman of the birthday party, then he should have addressed it to Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who changed into the senior vice-president of the PML-N.
Mr Iqbal stated the letter written by using Mr Qureshi showed the “non-seriousness” at the part of the ruling birthday celebration. He, but, stated the PML-N ought to give a attention to the invitation, if it got here from Imran Khan, either in his capability because the high minister or the PTI chairman.
Mr Iqbal said the PML-N had already delivered a constitution modification invoice in the National Assembly searching for introduction of South Punjab and Bahawalpur provinces in keeping with the resolutions of the Punjab Assembly.
The different opposition PPP, however, did now not deliver any response when its leaders were contacted to seek their response.
Mr Qureshi, whilst contacted for his remarks over the PML-N’s rejection, termed it disappointing and a non-serious method to an difficulty that had been below dialogue due to the fact that Nineteen Seventies.
“This isn't a question of seniority. This is ridiculous. I am speakme on concepts. I am doing it with the permission of my party’s chairman. Talk at the concept no matter who is saying it. Either you compromise or disagree with the idea. I am sorry, this suggests their seriousness on the problem,” he said.
Replying to a question, Mr Qureshi stated the Bahawalpur province turned into no longer economically-viable and this difficulty turned into being raised simplest to create hurdles. He claimed that many within the PML-N also did no longer comply with this inspiration. He stated they had no objection to the creation of Bahawalpur province, if it become economically viable.
Mr Qureshi said in his letters he had supplied complete info of some thing administrative steps they had already taken in the direction of making the South Punjab province.
“I write on the subject of the creation of a separate province of South Punjab comprising Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Bahawalpur divisions,” writes Mr Qureshi as the opening assertion in his letter.
“The advent of a separate province of South Punjab is a long standing aspiration of the humans of that region and a key component of the PTI manifesto. However, the number one obstacle to the realisation of this choice of 35 million human beings is a constitutional change that requires a two-thirds majority of parliament,” writes Mr Qureshi.
In his letter, Mr Qureshi also apprised the competition leaders about the steps taken via the PTI government within the route of the introduction of the brand new province like advent of separate secretariats in Multan and Bahawalpur granting administrative authority to diverse authorities departments, the steerage committee constituted for the functionality of South Punjab which has accepted a quota of 32pc for provincial employment for South Punjab and allocation and ring fencing of 35pc development price range for South Punjab divisions.
According to Mr Qureshi, the creation of a separate province via a Constitution amendment will pave the direction for meaningful and long-lasting progress “to which all three foremost political parties need to display harmony in dedication”.
Published in Dawn, January twenty first, 2022
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