IFTIKHAR ALAM

LAHORE – Terming the Balochistan situation grave, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has called for seeking apology from the Baloch brothers for the excesses committed in the past and reintegrating them by assuring they will get their due.
Shahbaz also said that ending corruption and malpractices is a must to make the country stronger  which is also a prerequisite for liberation of Kashmir, the jugular vein of Pakistan.
The chief minister was speaking as chief guest to a big gathering at the first session of the 4th three-day Nazaria-i-Pakistan Conference (NPC) organised by Nazria Pakistan Trust (NPT) at Aiwan-i-Karkunan Tehreek-i-Pakistan here Thursday.
The conference was presided over by Nawa-i-Waqt Group Chief Editor and NPT Chairman Majid Nizami. The NPT chairman, Vice Chairman Prof Dr Rafiq Ahmad, Secretary Shahid Rashid and Farooq Altaf, member Board of Governors of the Trust, also spoke on the occasion. NPT Senior Vice Chairperson Majida Wyne, Mahnaz Rafi, Zafar Iqbal Chaudhry, Masood Ahmadpuri, Prof Dr Perveen Shaukat Ali, Prof MA Soofi, Prof Dr Perveen Khan, Begum Khalida Jamil, Prof Farrah Naz, Shahid Rasheed and Rafaqat Riaz were also present. Pakistan needs to be saved from the conspiracies of the ‘looters’ who want to subdue the country to the wishes and will of the foreigners for the sake of few bucks, Shahbaz said. If Pakistan can become a nuclear power, it can also become an economic might in the world provided there is a will and direction to act on the line of Charter of Madina, he added.
“The country will, Insha Allah, get its true status corresponding to the ideas of Quaid-i-Azam and Allama Iqbal while the corrupt system will come to an end. We need to bury the worn out system to move ahead and the Punjab government will do it,” the CM said. Stating the Balochistan situation as very sensitive, he said, solution lies in listening to the voice of Baloch people and seeking apology for the excesses done, and assuring them on the acceptance of their legitimate demands. “Step motherly treatment to the Baloch should not be maintained anymore.”
Shahbaz Sharif reminded that Punjab gave a big sacrifice to make the NFC award a success so that extra money could go to Baloch people and they remain in the mainstream. Punjab did it politically what gun and ‘fist of Musharraf’ could not do, he said with reference to the Award and added that Punjab will not shirk from giving further sacrifices if need arose.
Kashmir will become part of Pakistan not through rhetoric but practical steps, said Shahbaz. He maintained that Kashmir is the jugular vein of Pakistan which could be liberated from the yoke of Indian slavery by action and making the country stronger through honesty and hard work – like did Germany after the WWII – and by ending social disparity and renouncing dependence on the aliens.
“Mere slogans will not work to make Kashmir a part of Pakistan.” The existing situation in the country, he said, is replete with looting of the national wealth, and problems galore to the masses, which by no means is conducive to achieve the liberation of Kashmir. “When we are disarrayed at home how we can help others?” He said decisions need to be taken to set things right and save the country from further destruction. In this scenario, the CM thanked that Punjab has adopted a definite line of not accepting dependence on others and has refused aid from them.
The CM lamented that despite the elapse of 64 years, “we have failed to render Pakistan as per dreams of Quaid and Iqbal”. Before independence Hindus and Britishers were conspiring and humiliating the Muslims of sub-continent and now although the situation has changed but our fate has not as the ‘foreigners still dictate us’ and demand us to ‘do more’.
He said the rulers have compromised the objectives of the creation of Pakistan by their loot and corruption and they have plagued the nation with the aliens, but now the time has come to break the shackles of foreigners’ slavery and protect ‘our own interests’.
“Dependence on the foreigners is no more acceptable and living on crumbs to save respect and dignity is preferable for us.” He said it is a time to take solid decisions as no headway is possible without coming out of this predicament.
In his presidential address at the opening session of the conference, Editor-in-Chief TheNation and Nazara-i-Pakistan Trust Chairman MajidNizami said the rulers are keen to create another Bangladesh in shape of Balochistan as he regretted at anarchy in parts of the province and criticised the rulers for their failure in addressing the grievances of the people.
In the evening, the NPT chairman addressed the Kashmir Session of the conference and asked the Pakistan Army to take action against India to free the ‘jugular vein of the country’ from the enemy.
Majid Nizami said that Pakistan movement was still continuing after passing of 64 years as “we were yet slaves of America” and have failed to make Pakistan a state according to the vision of Quaid-i-Azam and Allama Iqbal.
He rejected any kind of trade with India until the settlement of Kashmir dispute, which he said should be settled as per the UN resolutions and the wishes of Kashmiri people. He prayed that may Allah Almighty rid us the rulers who were even unaware about the American conspiracies in Balochistan.
Majid Nizami also condemned the drone attacks inside the Pakistani boundaries and prayed that God gave the courage to our leaders and army to shoot down the drones. He regretted the criticism being made on Jihad and lamented that those who talked about Jihad were sent behind the bars and even the people who advocated Jihad were not allowed to speak in any conference or session.
He reiterated that Two-nation Theory was the basis of Pakistan’s creation and the theory was still working even after the separation of Bangladesh. He believed that rulers next to Mujib’s daughter in Bangladesh would make a confederation with Pakistan. He asked the people of Pakistan to vote for those true leaders in next election who wanted to make Pakistan an Islamic welfare state.
He reiterated that any kind of trade or relations were not acceptable with India until the independence of Indian-held Kashmir. He also presented shied to the CM on the occasion.
Earlier, Majid Nizami opened the conference proceedings by a flag hoisting ceremony at the Aiwan. He was accompanied by Pakistan movement workers and people from different walks of life.
NPT chairman at third session of the conference, which focused on Kashmir, reiterated that people of Pakistan were standing shoulder to shoulder with their brothers who were struggling in Indian-held Kashmir for freedom. He regretted that Kashmir which was termed as jugular vein of Pakistan by the founder of the country was occupied by India even after 63 years of independence. He said that Pakistan would remain incomplete till the annexation of whole Jammu and Kashmir with the Islamic democratic state.
Renowned columnist Bushra Rehman, NPT Vice-chairman Professor Dr Rafique Ahmed, Kashmir leaders Sadiq Jarral, Syed Naseeb Ullah Gardezi, Mehnaz Rafi, MPA Rana Tajamul Hussain, Mian Farooq Altaf, Colonel (r) Ikram Ullah and others also spoke on the occasion. The speakers termed Majid Nizami as true advocate of Kashmiri people who was also struggling to secure the ideological boundaries of the country. They rejected the most favourite nation status to India, saying the 180 million people of Pakistan would not allow rulers to build relations with India on the blood of the people of Kashmir.
Earlier, NPT Vice-chairman Dr Rafique narrated the objectives of the NPT for organising the conference. He said that creating awareness among the people of Pakistan about Pakistan ideology was the main objective of the NPC. He said that the same was the core objective of all the activities of Trust continued throughout the year.