All State Institutions United On Agenda Of Pakistan's Survival: Chohan

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Dec, 2019 ) :Punjab Information Minister Fayyaz-ul-Hassan Chohan on Wednesday said all the state institutions, including army and judiciary, were united on the common agenda of the country's security and survival.

Talking to the media here at the Punjab Assembly, he said the Pakistan Army and other security agencies were on the same page with the government.

The minister said martial law in any shape was not acceptable. On many occasions in the last 12 years when speculations about imposition of martial law and suspension of the Constitution were rife, the top leadership of Pakistan Army supported the democratic process, he added.

He said in order to protect Pakistan from internal and external threats, thousands of sacrifices, especially in the last two decades of war against terrorism, had been rendered by the Pakistan Army.

Referring to the death sentence given to former president General (Retd) Pervez Musharraf by the Special Court in the high treason case, he said till 2010, Article 6 of the Constitution suggested only life imprisonment as punishment for abrogation of the Constitution. The act was amended in the year 2010 under the 18th Amendment to include suspension of the Constitution as a form of high treason as well but without clarifying whether it had retrospective effect, he added.

Chohan said on November 3, 2007 the Constitution was suspended only to the extent of few articles related to human rights for 42 days and neither the cabinet was bulldozed nor the political and parliamentary system was done away with.

" Under subsection (ii) of Article 6 of the Constitution, the same sentence should apply to all those persons being involved in this unconstitutional step," he added The minister said the then prime minister Shaukat Aziz, law minister Zahid Hamid, secretary law, judges, governors and politicians ought to be held accountable as well instead of convicting only three time war hero who, in November 1979, played a vital role in protecting the besieged Bait Ullah (Ka'aba) and rescuing thousands of hostages.

Chohan also raised a question as to why those involved in incidents like Baldia Town case, Rao Anwar case and Model Town case were not handed down death sentences. Similarly, all the main players from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party, who, by means of indulging into massive corruption, were roaming about freely, he added.

He expressed the hope that the superior courts would take a positive decision on the matter of encompassing all the stakeholders involved in the unfortunate and unconstitutional act of November 03, 2007.