Supra constitutional adventure in the country could not be ruled out :JI

Lahore: The central Shoora of the Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, has said that the possibility of any supra constitutional adventure in the country could not be ruled out because of the international conspiracies, but the JI was determined to foil every such endeavour.

A resolution adopted by the Shoora at its meeting chaired by JI chief Sirjul Haq, stressed that the political issues should be resolved through political means.

The Shoora reaffirmed its policy to play its role as a mediator in the present political crisis instead of being a party, and maintain an atmosphere of understanding.  It also appealed to the government, the PTI and the PAT to behave prudently and make concessions in order to pull the situation out of the blind alley.

While expressing deep concern over the present political situation and the challenges to the national solidarity and existence, the Shoora felt that the country was passing through the worst political crisis of its history. It noted that in spite of the persistent efforts of the JI chief Sirajul Haq to bring the opposite parties to the negotiation table and resolving the issues through political means, the dead lock was continuing and a situation of uncertainty prevailed.

The resolution said that the JI supported most of the demands of the sit-ins  and tried its best to achieve these demands through dialogue. It said that the transparency of the 2013 elections had always remained under debate and the JI itself had boycotted due to massive rigging in Karachi. It had also raised its voice against rigging in FATA and other areas.  “We feel that the reservations in all the provinces about the 2013 elections must be removed, and if the Judicial Commission probing the matter gave the finding that there had been rigging which had benefitted the present rulers, not only the Prime Minister should resign but the assemblies be dissolved and fresh elections be held. The entire parliament should guarantee that.

The JI central body noted that the present government had completely failed to solve the peoples problems. Instead of rehabilitating the country’s economy, the PML (N) government was securing loans from the IMF, levying indirect taxes and printing currency notes due to which the value of the currency had come down and the prices had gone up. It said that despite the suo moto notice and the directions of the Supreme Court on the writ petition field by JI Secretary General Liaqat Baloch on the high prices of atta, the prices had not come down.

The JI Shoora noted that the present rulers had not made any effort to strengthen the national economy, to resolve the river waters issue with India or  improve agriculture through reducing taxes on agricultural inputs. On the other hand, the government was trying to convert this country as a market for India.

The Shoora welcomed the assurance by the army chief and the ISPR on the non-political role of the armed forces. It however placed on record that the supra-constitutional adventures by some army generals in the past and the military rule in the country for 33 long years had caused great tragedies and done irreparable harm to the professional role of the armed forces themselves.

The Shoora noted that the constitution of 1973 was the custodian of Pakistan’s ideological and geographical boundaries and a guarantee for the federation of Pakistan as it ha the backing of the Objectives Resolution and the 22 points of the 31 Ulema. The constitution practically implied the failure of all efforts to promote the western culture and the preservation of the Islamic values in the country as were a part of our faith and the constitution, it said.

Besides, it said the provisions relating to the declaration of Islam as the state religion of the country, the Objectives Resolution, ban on any legislation repugnant to the Holy Quran and the Sunnah, the declaration of the Qadyanis as non-Muslims, the establishment of the Islamic Ideological Council, the Federal Shariat Court and the articles 62 and 63 of the constitution aimed at cleansing the parliament from the corrupt and dishonest elements, were the hallmark of the constitution and must be protected and preserved.

The JI central body strongly condemned the violence against the media men and working journalists. It said that any such violence either by the police or other state functionaries or the political parties were not only condemnable but also culpable. The attacks on the PTV, stoning on the office of JEO TV and attacks on different TV channels and cameramen simply indicated lack of tolerance and a fascist attitude, and the government and the political leadership must control this trend.