18:54
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ISLAMABAD: The government gave Punjab a free hand but turned down a request from KPK to allow Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar to visit Peshawar, The News has learnt.
The Foreign Ministry cited security reasons in KPK for disallowing the visit but Punjab stole the show without seeking the Centre’s permission or giving it intimation about the safety arrangements of the dignitary.
“Yes, the Foreign Office neither entertained the provincial government’s request sent in writing nor our party command’s repeated appeals to treat both Punjab and us equally,” confirmed ANP senior leader Haji Adeel when approached.
Adeel disclosed that he was the initiator of Nitish Kumar’s visit to Pakistan when he as chairman of the Senate’s standing committee on foreign affairs visited Bihar two months back.
“It is highly deplorable that the central government, of which we are a part, did not accommodate its allies. And the second fault is that we sought permission and were denied whereas Punjab totally bypassed the Centre and availed the opportunity.”
“The FO officials told me that Shahbaz Sharif’s government did not approach them with a letter like we did and that is why it is out of question for them to stop its authorities from arranging the visit.” The senator said the KPK government also attached along with the letter the detailed schedule for the visit. The Indian CM would have come to Peshawar on November 15-16 according to the programme.
The ANP leader said that not only CM Amir Haider Hoti but his party President AsfandYar Wali and he himself, as senior vice president and foreign affairs committee’s chairman, had issued formal invitations to CM Bihar for the KPK visit.
“In fact we are punished for following the rules and regulations and the protocol for foreign dignitaries otherwise our provincial government might not have faced such a situation.”Nitish Kumar had arrived in Pakistan on November 9 and left Pakistan through the Wagah border after a weeklong tour.
The Foreign Ministry cited security reasons in KPK for disallowing the visit but Punjab stole the show without seeking the Centre’s permission or giving it intimation about the safety arrangements of the dignitary.
“Yes, the Foreign Office neither entertained the provincial government’s request sent in writing nor our party command’s repeated appeals to treat both Punjab and us equally,” confirmed ANP senior leader Haji Adeel when approached.
Adeel disclosed that he was the initiator of Nitish Kumar’s visit to Pakistan when he as chairman of the Senate’s standing committee on foreign affairs visited Bihar two months back.
“It is highly deplorable that the central government, of which we are a part, did not accommodate its allies. And the second fault is that we sought permission and were denied whereas Punjab totally bypassed the Centre and availed the opportunity.”
“The FO officials told me that Shahbaz Sharif’s government did not approach them with a letter like we did and that is why it is out of question for them to stop its authorities from arranging the visit.” The senator said the KPK government also attached along with the letter the detailed schedule for the visit. The Indian CM would have come to Peshawar on November 15-16 according to the programme.
The ANP leader said that not only CM Amir Haider Hoti but his party President AsfandYar Wali and he himself, as senior vice president and foreign affairs committee’s chairman, had issued formal invitations to CM Bihar for the KPK visit.
“In fact we are punished for following the rules and regulations and the protocol for foreign dignitaries otherwise our provincial government might not have faced such a situation.”Nitish Kumar had arrived in Pakistan on November 9 and left Pakistan through the Wagah border after a weeklong tour.
Posted in: National
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