LAHORE - Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan has underscored the need for making the existing criminal justice system so strong that it is able to serve the purpose of administering quick and fair justice on the cases against terrorists and the hardened criminals at the expiry of the two years term of military courts.
“We need to take steps that the regular courts perform the job with the same speed as do the special courts,” he said while interacting with media along with human rights activist Ansar Burni on Wednesday.
To a question about his opposition to the military courts, the law minister said his dissention to the military courts has met the defeat at the party level meeting when the issue of setting up these courts was under debate. Rana Sana said military courts are being constituted for a limited period of time and the permanent solution lies in improving the existing courts for which the institution of judiciary needs to be made so strong that the judges do not feel fear from any corner and hear the trials irrepressibly and freely.
Not that but security also needs to be provided to the witnesses, prosecutors and the lawyers to achieve the end of early decision of the criminal cases, he added.
When asked to comment on the statement made by the Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah about severing ties with the federation, the law minister named PPP and the PTI as the parties which were performing very bad in their respective Sindh and KP provinces where they ruled.
He said statement by the leaders of these parties as such were out of sheer frustration and a sense that they are not going to stand anywhere in the next general elections. That is why leaders of these parties are out to create rifts on the basis of ethnicity and are striving to scare their own people showing that a powerful Punjab will be a threat to their existence so they should stay away from voting the PML-N, he added.
The minister however was quite optimistic that the PML-N will sweep the next polls also in Sindh and KPK.
To a question on the Punjab University clash of two groups of students, the minister overruled that any ethnic difference had caused the incident. He said he had telephonic talk with the JI leader Hafiz Sulman Butt last night and he had requested for cooperation to keep atmosphere in the University cool and peaceful.
Given the current situation, the minister said, no one can be allowed to hold rallies and processions within the university precincts. To a question on the appointment of Dolphin force to the protection of the elites, the law minister denied that any service of this kind is obtained from the Dolphins and insisted they have been charged with the exclusive duty of controlling street crime and their fullest utility would be realised on the completion of the Safe City Project.
Ansar Barni told the media about his last day meeting with Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif during which the CM ordered to set up Nadra points in all jails of the province for the convenience of the prisoners as to well as to trace out whether any terrorist impersonating himself as prisoner is taking shelter among them.
Same way he said, Nadra kiosks would also be set up at the mental hospitals to know whether all mental patients are genuine or any terrorist has sneaked in the mental hospitals as mentally ill.
Burni also told the media that he was going abroad soon to help the innocent Pakistanis released from the local jails. He also appealed to the law minister for setting up a committee which would help the innocent persons released from the jail and those who have been serving jail in petty offences.