LAHORE Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said that political parties have rendered innumerable sacrifices for independence of the judiciary and the PML-N will fully back the judiciary in case the government defies its verdicts. He said the PML-N respected the judicial verdicts even if they were against the Punjab government. In an interview with the Waqt News telecast on Friday, CM Shahbaz supported construction of the Kalabagh Dam. Programmes producer was Mian Shahid Nadeem and Assistant Producer was Waqar Qureshi. CM Shahbaz said, We were emotional for the KBD construction and would remain so. He maintained that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani should come forward for so as to evolve a consensus regarding KDB construction and the PML-N would through weight behind him. The CM said Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani was a pragmatic person and would not impose martial law, adding that there was no threat to democracy. He said he had met Gen Kayani several times. Stressing the need for accountability, he maintained that fraudsters should not be spared. He reminded that he made personal efforts for placing the name of former Bank of Punjab President Hamesh Khan on the exit control list (ECL). To a question, he said the PML-N was a democracy-loving party and would not become part of any undemocratic set-up and nor they would allow anyone to become part of this. To another question, he said doors of his party are always remain open for those who had not betrayed as well as stabbed the party in the back during dictatorship. He said the masses would hurl stones at former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf if he came back because he had launched Lal Masjid operation and caused damaged to the country. He held the previous government responsible for the current mess, saying that a new history of corruption had been created during that rule. He said his government would root out terrorism in Southern Punjab through solid measures and rehabilitation of the flood affectees. Answering a query, CM Shahbaz said the menace of terrorism in Punjab had started in 2006 during Musharraf rule. He stated that the Punjab government would take steps for the elimination of poverty. The government would not use money from the national exchequer to construct houses for the flood affectees, rather funds collected for the victims in CMs Relief Fund would be utilised for this purpose, he said. He revealed that funds collected for the affectees had surpassed Rs 1 billion. The CM reiterated that the PML-N would implement power-sharing formula agreed with the PPP and the latter itself had got fewer ministries in the formula. He maintained that power-sharing was meant for the province and people and not for the quota in government jobs. He made it clear that recruitments in police and education departments would be made only on merit. Talking about his reservations about the flood affectees in Punjab, Shahbaz said PM Gilani had removed them. He said Rs 20,000 were being paid to each affectee. He said the worst floods had caused huge devastation but we coped with it through national spirit. He lauded the role of bureaucracy, police and people of the country for helping the affectees. He said the Pakistan Army had played a key role in helping the flood-hit people and there would have been much frustration if the Army boats had not rescued the people. CM Shahbaz said rumours about government change were worrisome and the government should take notice and analyse why they were being circulated. Who had asked patriotic generals to save the country while on the other hand, PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif had just stated that corruption in the name of democracy would not be accepted and talked about constitutional change, Shahbaz said. The CM said it was a good thing that in-house change had not taken place in the past but maintained that nothing strange could not be ruled out in politics. He stated that it was appreciable that political parties and civil society had struggled for democracy but, he regretted, the people had not reaped the benefits of democracy in the last two and a half years. New scandals had frustrated and disappointment the people, he said adding that a few days back, scandal of Director General Hajj had surfaced which was not good omen and trend in a vibrant democracy. CM Shahbaz Sharif said the PML-M was firm on its motto that inequality between the rich and the poor should end and it would continue its efforts in this regard after rehabilitation of the flood affectees.