Twirp: Terrorist Wahabi Islamic Rep Pakistan 5

[Naresh]

[url="http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=225622"]Walkout against ‘surrender’ of water share[/url]

THE Opposition in the Punjab Assembly on Monday lodged a strong protest against, what they called, the provincial government’s voluntary surrender of its water share water from Chashma-Jehlum Link Canal to Sindh. The protest led to the exchange of harsh words between provincial minister Raja Riaz and Opposition members, which prompted them to stage a walkout in protest against the use of non-parliamentary language by the minister.



Opposition Leader Chaudhry Zaheeruddin, Sardar Mohsin Khan Leghari and other noted Opposition members raised quite an uproar over the issue of Punjab’s surrendering two thousand cusecs of water per day from Chashma canal, and alleged that the government had sold out Punjab’s water to Sindh at the cost of possible disaster to the agri sector which was the mainstay of the provincial economy.



At the outset of the session, Mohsin Leghari, on a point of order, drew the Speaker’s attention towards the reports that the Punjab government had voluntarily allowed reduction of water flow in Chashma-Jehlum Link Canal from 5,000 cusecs per day to 3,000 cusecs. He asked the Speaker to allow holding of a proper debate on the issue since it concerned the provincial and national economy, and issue directions for the minister concerned to take the House into confidence about the actual decisions made by the government. He said Minister for Irrigation and Power Raja Riaz had been representing the Punjab in the IRSA meetings and he should reply to the House about what transpired there.



Chaudhry Zaheer also demanded the government take the House and the masses into confidence over their unilateral giving away of the province’s share of water.



Raja Riaz said the prime minister had called the meeting of all chief ministers to resolve the issue of water sharing and the Punjab chief minister had suggested him that the four chief ministers would decide and resolve the issue among themselves amicably with negotiations. He said Punjab’s delegation had visited Sindh to assured them that Punjab was not a ‘water thief’ as being portrayed by certain quarters. He said our delegation had also persuaded the Sindh government about the alternate usage of water according to requirements of both provinces, since Sindh needed water for crops one month earlier than Punjab.



“We asked them that Sindh could use water from the canal according to its requirements one month before Punjab needed it for irrigation and Punjab would use it when it needed it one month later.”



The minister for irrigation and water said Sindh’s delegation was visiting Punjab these days and a meeting was going on to resolve all the remaining issues. Hopefully, the masses would get a good news very soon since we had been striving to promote provincial harmony, he said, adding that the impression that the Chashma Canal was closed down was wrong since only a reduction of 2,000 cusecs was made in its flow.



However, Mohsin Leghari said the government had a record of surrendering before Sindh, since it had already surrendered 2.4 percent of its share in the National Finance Commission award and it was surrendering water from Chashma Canal which was vital for southern Punjab and considered the lifeline of its agri products. At this, many other members from the Opposition benches began saying that Raja Riaz had compromised the interests of Punjab in the name of water settlement.



The Speaker said the Opposition members were raising hue and cry as if the minister had made compromise on national interests. But the Opposition members did not calm down and kept demanding that the reasons behind the surrender of water share be stated before the House.



Raja Riaz said the issue concerned the national harmony and the Opposition was ruining it by raising hue and cry at a time when the delegation from Sindh was in Punjab for negotiating the water share. He assured the House that his government would seek approval of all decisions made during the meeting. He got infuriated with continuous demands by the Opposition members, and said if the Opposition members did not keep quiet then he would be forced to say that the Opposition leaders had compromised national interests and that ìYour Leghari is a traitor of the country.î



His remarks irked the Opposition members and Speaker was prompted to expunge them from the proceedings. However, Chaudhry Zaheeruddin said the provincial harmony, which the government was claiming to be keeping most sacred, was damaged during the last two years to the extent which was unprecedented in history. He announced a walkout over the surrendering of Punjab’s 2,000 cusecs water and insult to the Opposition leaders by the senior minister of the province.



Interestingly, two members from the Treasury benches also staged a walkout with the Opposition members without saying anything. The Speaker was amazed and asked about the reasons behind it. He also sent provincial minister Kamran Micheal and Haji Ishaq to persuade both the Opposition members and the Treasury members to end their boycott and join the session.



The Opposition members remained out of the House for about half an hour despite that the Speaker sent ministers twice to bring them in. They demanded an unconditional apology from Raja Riaz as a precondition for joining the House proceedings. When speaker asked Raja Riaz to apologise to the the Opposition members, the minister said he had not criticise the Opposition member Mohsin Leghari but he had meant to condemn the Millat Party leader Sardar Farooq Leghari who had betrayed the PPP by dissolving the second government of Benazir Bhutto. Later, the Opposition joined the proceedings after Raja Riaz apologised to them

Cheers