DAWN/The News International, KARACHI 26 June 2000, Monday, 22 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1421
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MIT office-bearers
KMC octroi case: three witnesses testify before court
Pakistan a land of Pakhtuns: Nasim Wali
Pakistan cannot intervene in bin Laden case: Moin
MIT office-bearers

KARACHI: The Mohajir Ittehad Tehreek (MIT) has again elected Dr Salim Haider as chairman of the party for the next two years. According to party announcement, the MIT also elected Rashid Qureshi and Ejaz Shaikh as secretary general and deputy secretary general respectively, Abbas Khan as joint secretary, Dr Adil Saeed secretary information and Sarfaraz Alam as treasurer. The party also elected Beharuddin Shaikh, Tahir Pervez, Nadeem Khan and Mumtaz Ali Khan as vice president.

KMC octroi case: three witnesses testify before court
ATTOCK, June 25: One of the three witnesses appeared before the Attock Fort Accountability Court deposed on Saturday that the Port Qasim factor had been ignored by the authorities concerned while awarding KMC octroi contract for the year 1997-98.

Deputy Director of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Khaliq Waqar posted at the Karachi Port Trust (KPT), informed the court that the authorities were well aware of the fact that Port Qasim Container Terminal (PQCT) would be operative soon.

"Due to operation of the PQCT, 25 to 40 per cent reduction occurred in the income of KMC octroi," he said, while deposing before the court in octroi reference against former Sindh Local Government Minister Farooq Sattar and KMC Administrator Anzar Zaidi.

During the cross-examination, he said, he had gathered information in his personal capacity that the Port Qasim Terminal would be operative in 1997. "I was also aware of the pending operation of the PQCT."

Earlier, M.I. Qureshi, the then Director of Sindh Local Government, informed the court that the Auction Committee for awarding was constituted in light of the policy guidelines provided by the government.

He conceded that there were no prescribed rules to establish auction committee or to regulate its proceedings.

During the cross-examination, he contended that no private party could directly approach the Auction Committee with its offer.

He said that it would be incorrect to say that there was legal necessity to auction and hand over the contract to the contractor on July 1 every year.

The third witness who appeared before the court was Assistant Accounts Officer of the Octroi Department, KMC, Aftab Ahmed.

He produced record of the award of the contract to Bolan Enterprise by the KMC for the year 1997-98. The court took into custody the original record of the award of contract and made it part of the court record.

The court adjourned the hearing for June 26 next for further recording of evidence. Raja Muhammad Bashir, Deputy Prosecutor General, appeared for the state while defence was represented by Dr Basit, Ahsan Iqbal and Rana Ghulam Habib, advocates.

BASIT'S PLEA: The Judge of Accountability Court, Farrukh Latif, on Saturday issued notice to the state on an application filed by Dr Basit against the entry procedure in the court at the Attock Fort.

The court will hear the arguments on June 27. The application is directed against the security procedure at the Attock Fort Accountabi-lity Court.

Dr Basit was seeking court's indulgence for allowing the workers of MQM who wanted to hear the case. The court asked the counsel first to provide the list of the persons who wanted to attend the proceedings.

The main objection of the applicant was against the scrutiny of the list of the persons before their coming to the court.-APP

Pakistan a land of Pakhtuns: Nasim Wali

PESHAWAR: Provincial president of Awami National Party (ANP) Begum Nasim Wali Khan on Sunday said people have the right to know in detail about the statement of Chief Executive General Pervaiz Musharraf regarding unity of Pakhtuns.

Her remarks came to a question about the reported statement of Chief Executive General Pervaiz Musharraf regarding Pakhtuns' rule in Afghanistan and unification of Pakhtuns living in Balochistan and the Frontier Province.

She criticised the statement of Ajmal Khattak about the Durand Line and his stand that Pakhtuns were nothing outside the framework of Pakistan. In reply to Khattak's statement, she said Pakistan was the land of the Pakhtuns but no one would resort to self-negation like Ajmal Khattak.

"I would rather say what will be the state of Pakistan without Pakhtuns. Our elders have rendered numerous sacrifices for this country. There would have been no Pakistan had Pakhtuns not challenged legitimacy of the British rule," she said.

Reacting to a query about the complaints against her inside the party, she said: "Even the big wigs failed to stop me from politics, let alone those campaigning against me." She said that no one could ask her to remain indoor and quit politics unless she decided so and said that many leaders deserted the party in the past but no one made attacks on her family so far. "It is only Ajmal Khattak who did so. I gave lots of respect to Khattak whenever he visited our home," she said and admitted that she was only shocked over the desertion of the party by Zarin Gul from Battagram.

About Azam Khan Hoti, she said the government should bring corruption charges against him and should inform the nation about the actual situation. Begum Nasim expressed concern over the worsening law and order situation in the country and hinted at contacting the masses from the platform of Grand Democratic Alliance to apprise them of the process of accountability. The meeting was largely attended by members of the provincial council from all over the province.

Pakistan cannot intervene in bin Laden case: Moin

KARACHI: Pakistan is unable to help the United States apprehend alleged terrorist Osama bin Laden and the US should discuss his extradition with the Afghan authorities, interior minister Moinuddin Haider said on Sunday. "He is neither a Pakistani national nor he is our problem.  We cannot help the US in this matter," Haider said, urging Washington to hold talks with the Taliban. The US has asked Pakistan to help convince the hardline Taliban to hand over bin Laden, as the Afghan militia has refused repeated requests saying it is against Afghan culture to expel a "guest." "Afghanistan is a sovereign country and we cannot interfere in their internal affairs," Haider told reporters. The Taliban authorities say the US failed to provide any evidence to establish bin Laden's involvement in the terrorist incidents.

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