Wednesday, 14 October, 2020 I 25 Safar, 1442 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XI No 105 I 12 Pages I Karachi Edition
Talks wiTh india on kashmir conTingenT on condiTions, says saPm g
YuSuf ClAImS GovT HAS HARD EvIDENCE INDIA bACKED TERRoRIST CEllS IN PAKISTAN ISLAMABAD
d
STAFF REPORT
R moeed Yusuf, the special adviser to the prime minister on national security, has said the Indian government has recently reached out to Pakistan, expressing a desire to resume bilateral dialogue about the Kashmir issue, to which the country was ready to talk, as long as Kashmir was involved as a third party. In the first interview to any Indian publication by a government official following the Indian annexation of held Kashmir in August last year, Yusuf, during a conversation with renowned journalist Karan Thapar, said that Islamabad’s agreement to dialogue would be “conditional”. “The conditions include the immediate release of occupied Kashmir’s political prisoners, lifting of the heavy military siege from the territory, the reversal of New Delhi’s decision to strip the region of its special status, ending human rights violations in the valley and a stop to India’s state-sponsored terrorism against Pakistan,” he said. last year, India repealed occupied Kashmir’s special status, and in the interview, journalist Karan Thapar claimed that this was an “internal matter”. However, the SAPm contended that India’s unilateral decision said that India had disobeyed the united Nations Security Council (uNSC) resolutions regarding the
matter, as well as the bilateral Simla Agreement. SAPm Yusuf also quoted the Kashmiri leader farooq Abdullah, who had also given an interview with Thapar. In that interview, Abdullah had stated that the Kashmiris did not wish to be Indian, and would rather “be ruled by Chinese”. “The day India recognises that only the wishes of people of Kashmir matter, this issue can be resolved,” Yusuf told Thapar. He further added that the talks would have to have a democratic approach to the Kashmir issue, remarking that “democratic societies […] do not bring in 180,000 troops to change the status of a territory.” He also critiqued that the annexation of Kashmir had resulted in a curfew imposed on the populace. Yusuf clarified that Pakistan had been forced to take the issue to the international forums as India repeatedly rejected Pakistan’s attempts to
coronavirus in
PakisTan
CONFIRMED CASES:
319,848
initiate talks and that it had “formally gone outside the uN charter and resolutions by making a permanent change to a territory I rightfully claim as mine”. As the premier’s aide was referring to the now-repealed Article 370 of the Indian constitution, the journalist asked if Pakistan’s actions regarding Gilgit-baltistan (Gb) might seem contradictory to Islamabad’s protests against India’s aforementioned decision to repeal. Responding to the question, Yusuf said “no decision has been made” regarding granting Gb a provincial status but added that the matter was the subject of “public debate”. He further added that this debate had been generated by the people of Gb and that the indigenous citizens had themselves been saying “We want to be fully integrated with Pakistan”. “Now you tell me, Karan, if people are not treated well, would they
ever want that? I’ve never heard the Kashmiri muslims talk about this in the occupied territory,” Yusuf said. He also added that the results of the debate would follow the resolutions of the united Nations Security Council (uNSC) and that there would be no “permanent change of territorial status”. Yusuf did agree with the journalist on the fact that Gb is a disputed territory. In regards to any future steps taken, Yusaf said that Pakistan was firmly dedicated to resolving the dispute and fulfilling the aspirations of over eight million Kashmiris. He said that Indian propaganda would not shake the principled stance of Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. furthermore, the SAPm instigated that India had sponsored terrorist activities in Pakistan, adding that India’s expansionist and Hindutva ideologies were preventing any meaningful talks from taking place. He spoke about Indian intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing’s (RAW) role in attacks that took place in Pakistan over the last few years, including attack at a five-star Hotel in Gwadar, Chinese Consulate in Karachi and the Pakistan Stock Exchange and the 2014 attack on the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar. He added that the mastermind behind the attack was in contact with Indian handlers at the consulate in Afghanistan and that he had been treated at a New Delhi hospital in 2017. Yusuf said that India was “using Afghanistan’s” territory in its machinations.
ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT
LAST UPDATED AT 6:52 AM ON OCTOBER 13, 2020
DAY'S DEATH TOLL:
8
RECOVERED:
NEW CASES:
531
DEATHS:
304,609 6,588 SINDH:
PUNJAB:
140,534
100,764
KP:
BALOCHISTAN:
AJK/GB:
ISLAMABAD:
38,367
15,541
3,131/3,955 17,428
ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT
Irked by the excessive power outages in Sindh, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed on Tuesday took the federal government to task for excessive load-shedding in the province, saying the “federation was not fulfilling its responsibility”. The electricity situation in Sindh has worsened latterly with provincial ministers’ warning of public protests against recurring power failures. While hearing a suo motu case regarding unannounced power tripping in the province, the chief justice, who was heading the three-member bench, rejected as unsatisfactory the reports presented by the federal authorities and the National Electric and Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) explaining the issue. “These reports do not give a clear picture,” said the judge. He observed that neither the federal nor the provincial governments were doing anything to address the issue. “What services are you providing to people? What is your justification for staying on the job,” he questioned. Referring to NEPRA representatives and staffers of the Power Division, the top judge said, “You all should be fired. There is no point in having such employees.” He said that people were being allowed to exploit state institutions. “The government does not have the capabilities. All institutions are taking advantage of the government’s shortcomings,” he said. Regarding K-Electric, Justice Ahmed said that the power utility had become the people’s master after “hijacking” them, adding that the price for electricity in the metropolis had been increased once again. During the hearing, the court noted that it had reservations about the power utility’s investors. KE’s chairman informed the court that investors with ties to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait had invested $400 million in the company.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 05
Govt to restrict public gathering in cities with high positivity ratio The National Command and Control Centre (NCoC) has issued guidelines for public gatherings to prevent the spread of the coronavirus that it said were prepared with the input of provinces. The guidelines will apply to all cultural events, political gatherings, religious gatherings, parties or other similar events but not to marriages or sports, for which separate SoPs have been prepared. for indoor events, the NCoC has advised that participation be limited to 500 persons or 50 per cent of capacity, whichever is less; the events’ duration should not exceed three hours; all persons should be seated, and there should be a three-feet distance between seats. for outdoor events, the NCoC says the density of participants should be controlled; organisers should ensure the wearing of masks and social
SC censures Centre for failure to address Sindh’s power woes
CONTINUED ON PAGE 05
more inside
Testing of Covid-19 needs to be increased in schools, says WHO STORY ON BACK PAGE
NAb to probe Roosevelt Hotel closure, huge losses STORY ON PAGE 03
distancing; all persons should remain seated; events’ duration should not exceed three hours; rallies or gatherings on roads and other “ill-defined places” be avoided; no gatherings to be held in cities where positivity ratio is consistently high, i.e, 6 to 9 per cent or more. Emphasising on the importance of risk mitigation in order to prevent a second coronavirus wave, minister for Plan-
ning and Development Asad umar on Tuesday said the public response had been key in controlling the outbreak in the country. According to a statement by the NCoC, the minister stressed the importance of risk mitigation in a session attended by all four provincial chief secretaries via a video-link.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 05
Prime suspect in motorway gangrape case sent on 14-day remand STORY ON PAGE 02
Pm dismayed by establishment of multiple camps: faraz STORY ON PAGE 03