LAHORE - The PML-N yesterday blamed former President Pervez Musharraf for the current spate of terrorism in Pakistan and claimed it had done what the other governments failed to do to curb this menace in the country.

“It was submission of Pervez Musharraf to American dictates after 9/11 that led to advent of Nato forces in Afghanistan and made this region a war theatre with Taliban,” said PML-N Central Secretary Information Mushahidullah Khan, while talking to The Nation.

It has been over a decade since Pakistan soil has been red with the blood of innocent people. For it today not only Taliban and their splinters are responsible, but also new players like Islamic State have also come to the field to shed blood of the people in Pakistan.

“The long stay of American and Nato forces in Afghanistan did more to fan Taliban terrorism in Pakistan than putting control on their activity,” he said, adding killings in US drone attacks also left a negative impact and were retaliated by Taliban by taking lives of people in Pakistan. Mushahid said the US forces and the Afghan government could not do enough to control Taliban in Afghanistan, who today govern a major chunk of that country with the freedom to plan and execute terror activity in Pakistan. He found the US-sponsored access to India in Afghanistan and its influence in the affairs of that government another major factor that gave a new dimension to militants’ hostility against Pakistan. He said India managed to put among the Taliban ranks those elements which it had fostered and designed to keep the cauldron of terrorism burning in Pakistan and provided them with material and funds for this purpose. Now the situation is more of a proxy war wherein some militants groups are acting under the influence of America and many others under India, he added.

The PML-N leader said had Pervez Musharraf rightly calculated the future situation before totally bowing before America, Pakistan would not have faced this milieu. “Although we have successfully done much to end terrorism in our soil, still much more needs to be done across the border which had become a hub of proxy war against Pakistan,” he affirmed. He asserted India spent money to create facilitators of the terrorists.

Mushahidullah said it was Pakistan which gave huge sacrifices to curb terrorism, but received nothing from the world. He further pointed out the elements that were uprooted from Pakistan.

To a question, he said the presence of Afghan refugees was also a reason for terrorism in Pakistan. “If a handful of terrorists cross over to Pakistan from Afghanistan mixing up with daily commutation of thousands of refugees to and from the border, it can make the job of terrorists much easier. We have put a gate on Torkham border, the question remains about blocking the movement of terrorists on the 2,200-km-long border between Pakistan and Afghanistan,” he averred.

To a question about the reported presence of militants in Southern part of Punjab, Mushahid said action against them was also on and cited the example of Chotu Gang which was neutralised in Katcha area of Punjab in January-February last.

Mushahid also gave credit to the PML-N government for sternly acting against terrorism due to which the situation today was much better than it was three years ago. He said National Action Plan was put in place besides launching Zarb-e-Azb through the military. He said although room for improvement in the NAP is always there, the government efforts cannot be reckoned as a total failure.

The PML-N leader admitted that NAP implementation relating to operation under National Counter-Terrorism Authority (Nacta) was missing. “Rest of the plan was implemented while Nacta activity was also bettered through other channels,” he claimed.

After a very sad incident in Quetta, he said, all stakeholders have held meetings to plug the loopholes in the security of the citizens through more effective implementation of the NAP. He said as a result of that parleys, action against militants and extremists had been started with an added might. In the times to come, concrete results would be forthcoming, he concluded.