ISLAMABAD - Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Monday, taking suo motu notice of the massacre of Hazara community, issued notices to the attorney general and the Balochistan advocate general and fixed the matter for hearing today (Tuesday).
The tragic incident in Hazara Town on February 16 left 87 citizens dead and 200 injured. The incident caused a rage amongst Hazara Shia community not only in Quetta but also across the country. Hazara community in Quetta and Shia community all over the country is protesting against it. Various leaders, religious and political, have criticised the performance of police and other law-enforcement agencies in curbing terrorism in Balochistan.
Such kinds of two horrific incidents of powerful explosions occurred in January on Bacha Khan Road and Alamdar Road in Quetta, resulting in the death of more than 93 persons and injuries to 120, belonging to Hazara community. The situation became critical and, ultimately, governor’s rule was imposed in the Balochistan province on January 14, 2013.
It is pertinent to mention here that during the hearing of Balochistan law and order case on February 15, the chief justice said the state was responsible for enforcing the fundamental rights enshrined in Article 9 of the Constitution, so concrete and effective steps must be taken to protect the fundamental rights of people of Balochistan. The next hearing of the case was fixed for March 6.
This is indeed a critical moment in the history of the country. The death of over 87 innocent citizens and injury to 200 others in bomb blasts is failure of the fovernment to provide security to the people and their property as mentioned in articles 4, 9, 14, 24 and 25 of the Constitution.