Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Federal Minister for Science and Technology, has said that calling the arrest of PML-N leader Capt Safdar the violation of the sanctity of one’s private life was “an open joke”. Rather, a worse example of such kind of violation was set by the previous government during the Model Town incident, he said in his message on social media platform Twitter.
چادر اور چاردیواری کی حرمت کو پامال کرنے کا بدترین واقعہ ماڈل ٹاؤن میں پولیس گردی تھی،بے گناہ لوگ جن میں حاملہ خاتون بھی شامل تھیں پولیس گردی کا نشانہ بنیں۔ صفدر کی گرفتاری کو چادر اور چار دیواری کی پامالی کہنا تو مذاق ہے خصوصاْ اس گروپ کی طرف سے جو ماڈل ٹاؤن کا ذمہ دار ہے
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) October 22, 2020
Notably, a deadly clash took place on 17 June 2014 where several members of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) got killed by the indiscriminate use of force by the Punjab police. The Model Town tragedy made headlines across the world and the PML-N government was criticized and exposed for following a vested political agenda.
Later on, a commission was made under the supervision of an LHC serving judge. The commission submitted its report but the PML-N led government did not publish it. Ultimately, the Punjab government, at the behest of the LHC, had made the report of the Model Town incident public on December 5, 2017.
Justice Najafi reports that then Punjab Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Rana Sanaullah seems to have already decided on June 16, 2014 that Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Chairman Dr. Tahir ul Qadri would not be allowed any opportunity to hold a long march from Rawalpindi to Lahore, as the latter planned to do on June 23, 2014.
Read more: Model Town Case: Inevitable need to reform system
This single-minded determination of the minister to thwart Dr. Qadri’s political objectives ended up influencing the police’s heavy-handed strategy in dealing with the situation, which resulted in the needless loss of lives the very next day, Justice Najafi argues in the report.
Justice Najafi outlines four very important points in his findings:
- “The operation planned and designed under the chairmanship of the then law minister resulted in gruesome killings could have easily been avoided.”
- “The facts and circumstances of the bloodbath clearly show that the police officers actively participated in the massacre.”
- “The apathy and recklessness of all authorities in Punjab in the matter under hand-created genuine doubts about their innocence.”
- “The actions of police of firing and severely beating the people on the crime scene is irrefutably suggestive that the police did exactly for which they were sent and gathered over there.”
Read more: Model Town Tragedy: Punjab Government challenges LHC decision dissolving the JIT
Though Justice Najafi himself does not affix responsibility for the tragedy, he invites readers to review the facts and circumstances and “easily fix the responsibility of the unfortunate Minhajul Quran incident” themselves.
Police, not Rangers, arrested Safdar, Shahbaz Gill
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Dr Shahbaz Gill has said that the CCTV footage of the arrest of Captain (retd) Safdar is a slap in the face of corruption partners. The false narrative of the false democrats has been exposed, he said.
In an interview with Dunya News, he said the real face of PML-N leaders, who can do anything for their personal interests, has been exposed. They also campaigned against Benazir Bhutto, he added.
When asked about the opposition’s demand of the PM resigning over the Karachi incident, Shabaz Gill asked whether the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had resigned over the Model Town tragedy, in which they opened fire on women and children.
Dr Shahbaz Gill said that it was clear in the footage that force was not used in Captain (retd) Safdar’s arrest and he was arrested by the police, not by the Rangers. History shows that these people have used the police for personal gains, he added.