ISLAMABAD - Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce, Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan, Wednesday said that government had granted the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India under the foreign pressure and without consulting the Parliament. Talking to TheNation, Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan said that government did not take the parliamentary committee on board before announcing such a big decision for granting MFN status to India. Government is also ignoring the impact of granting MFN to India on Pakistans domestic manufacturing, such as pharmaceuticals, motor vehicle, durable consumer goods and a host of other industries, he observed. It might be mentioned here that federal cabinet unanimously decided on Wednesday to grant India Most Favoured Nation status to liberalise trade between the two South Asian countries. Khurram Dastgir further informed that Standing Committee of Commerce might be called after Eid-ul-Azha to discuss the matter in detail. However, he categorically said that committee would demand that Commerce Minister itself appear before the committee to give the details in this regard. We will not accept the briefing of Secretary Commerce on this issue, he said. He came down hard on the Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim and said that Commerce Minister had attended only two meetings of the Standing Committee in three and half years. The standing committee on commerce has asked the commerce minister in writing on October 19 for a detailed briefing on MFN status to India. Despite passing 15 days, the minister has so far failed to respond. Meanwhile, in his statement, Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan said, Zardari regime has taken another major international commerce decision under pressure from foreign powers and without consulting the Parliament. Just as the signing of Afghan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA) earlier, grant of MFN status to India is the second time this year that Zardari dispensation has acted in undue haste to grant major trade concessions. Granting MFN status to India is a precipitate move made by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government without due deliberation in the cabinet, no discussion in relevant standing committee of the National Assembly and lacking a thorough parliamentary debate. He further said in his statement, the Foreign Minister made a perfunctory announcement on the floor of the National Assembly last month, giving to Parliament neither facts nor arguments for this momentous policy shift. The government must come clean before the legislature and explain clearly the cost benefit analysis and assessment of domestic and international impact of granting MFN status to India, Khurram Dastgir demanded. Chairman NA Standing on Commerce further said that there are grave reservations such as: denial of self-determination, human rights violations and black laws in Kashmir; Indias building of dozens of dams to control rivers flowing into Pakistan; and Indian interference in Baluchistan, as well as a plethora of outstanding historical disputes such as Siachen, Sir Creek, and Wullar Barrage.