Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan opens up on differences with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership
By; Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: Estranged Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) stalwart Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan addressed a press conference and spoke about his differences with the party leadership. Nisar also defended decisions he took in the past as country’s interior minister pertaining to national security, saying that he successfully shattered the network of terrorism. He said the critics had blamed the interior ministry for every failure and negligence.“More than 2000 diplomatic passports and more than 0.2 million licenses for prohibited bore arms were cancelled during my tenure,” he said.“No one can get the visa on airport now,” he said, claiming that “no terror network currently exists in Pakistan.”“For the first time, the NGOs were regulated and registered as per the law. I cancelled 98 million mobile SIMs, cancelled 32,000 passports issued to foreigners including 2000 diplomatic passports,” he said, while highlighting the performance of his ministry over the past four years. About his differences with the party, Nisar said he parted his ways with PML-N due to difference of opinion.“Nawaz Sharif and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi tried to convince me till the last minute over my decision to resign, but I categorically refused to accept portfolio of the ministry owing to some reasons and ultimately disassociated myself from the ministry. I clarified that I’m not aspirant of any office,” he explained.“There was the difference and it still exists,” Nisar said, adding that he had not announced to quit the party or politics. “My statement was misinterpreted,” he said. When asked to reveal the reasons behind his conflict with the party leadership, he said “the party is in a difficult situation, so it’s not an appropriate time to speak up on these issues. It may hurt the party.”Replying to a question about Dawn Leaks inquiry, he said only one member of the six-man committee was from the interior ministry, adding that the remaining members were from federal and provincial departments. He said he was not involved in the leak of any news. Billions of rupees are being spent on fencing of Pak-Afghan border to check the flow of terrorists into the country, he said.He said there is no civil-military conflict and the military has been extending support to the Interior Ministry.Addressing a news conference days before the announcement of the Panama Papers verdict, the former minister had confirmed, for the first time, reports about an internal rift within the party, claiming he had been excluded from the consultative process on Panamá gate.he said that security situation improved considerably in the country in four years due to coordination and efforts of the government, military, civil armed forces and political parties.
Nisar, senior leader of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-N, said that when the government came in 2013, five to six explosions occurred daily. After a meeting with the prime minister in 2013, an internal security policy was announced, he said.
When the decision was taken to initiate a dialogue with Taliban, all political parties and the military were on board and dialogue process continued for eight months, he said. The dialogue was discontinued after a terrorist attack on Karachi airport and military operation was launched, he recalled.
Initially, the Jamiat Ulema Islam, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Jamaat-e-Islami were not ready but later on they did not oppose the military operation launched with consensus among the stakeholders, he added.
He said that the National Action Plan was activated after the attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar in 2014 after consultation with all the parties. He said that despite reservations of some parties, consensus was developed for an operation in Karachi and law and order improved in the city.
“Now Karachi is not hostage to madness of one man,” he added. “Now we are at the last stage of operation against the terrorists and need to continue the fight against terrorism with steadfastness and patience,” he said.
The army and the civil armed forces gave unprecedented sacrifices in fight against terrorism, he said, adding that despite the fact that police was ill equipped and lacked training, it also countered terrorism bravely.
He said that the Interior Ministry took initiatives to improve matters related to issuance of visas, weapons of non-prohibited bores and non-governmental organisations. He said that his ministry cancelled thousands of fake identity cards and 32,000 illegal passports, adding 2000 unauthorized official passports were also cancelled.
Nisar mentioned that names of 10,000 persons which were on the Exit Control List (ECL) for many years, were removed. He said that about 100 million mobile SIMs, many of which were used in terrorism and criminal activity, were cancelled despite all the pressure.
He said that the security mechanism was made effective in towns of Chaman and Torkham on the borders of Afghanistan and performance of the civil armed forces was improved with spending of Rs 100 billion. To a question, he said that the government conducted the inquiry of the ‘news leaks’ and the Interior Ministry had no role in it except that it issued the notification.
About departure of Pervez Musharraf, he said that once he stopped the former military ruler at airport as he was about to take a flight but later on he was allowed to go abroad on the orders of the courts. He said that he had announced that he would leave the ministry, regardless of outcome of the court case against Nawaz Sharif.
“If I talked about my reasons for leaving the ministry it would hurt my party at a time when the party and its leadership were facing a difficult time.” He said that Nawaz Sharif and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi wanted him to again take up the portfolio of the Interior Ministry but he declined.
Nisar said that he had difference of opinion with the party but he always talked about it in the party’s internal meetings and never leaked any news about what he said. Those who leaked news about party meetings were dishonest, he added.
He said that during his tenure as the federal minister, he saw good civil military relations and never felt any problem in sharing of information and intelligence between the departments.
