Jails in Sindh set to be filled: Fawad

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Thursday said that prisons in Sindh are about to be filled.He said that dispensation of expeditious and inexpensive justice is imperative for achieving the goals of development and prosperity of the country. Addressing the ceremony of District Bar Association in Islamabad, he said, "Unless a common man is satisfied, real progress will remain a dream.”He said like all other segments of the society, the lawyers’ community also offered sacrifices in the war against terrorism and the nation cannot forget those who laid down their lives in this war.The information minister said Prime Minister Imran Khan was the only person who could steer the country out of crisis. In the recent crisis, he said the prime minister and armed forces of Pakistan played an exemplary role and the nation stood behind them."We have to ponder over thesteps as to how we can take Pakistan economically forward," he added. The minister said there was a need for strict implementation of law as nobody was taking it seriously even a defendant did not bother to reply to the notice of defamation.He said in 1970s, a revolution of the poor came under the leadership of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto while the present change under the dynamic leadership of Imran Khan was the revolution of the middle class.Fawad said that he would write letters to the chief justices of the high courts to nominate two judges in all district courts for taking up defamation cases in their respective districts.He said reforms in the judicial system were also imperative for betterment of the economy. As far as judicial reforms were concerned the government wanted to take all stakeholders onboard and all bars would also be consulted in this connection, he added.The minister said that the opposition made hue and cry over accountability process claiming that they were being victimised. "But the fact of the matter is that all cases were registered during the previous regime, even prosecution and investigation officer were also appointed by them."The minister categorically stated that no compromise would be made on accountability. Earlier, Fawad Chaudhry took a U-turn and retracted his support for the Punjab Assembly’s decision to increase the salaries and perks of MPAs, ministers and the provincial chief minister.Speaking to the media earlier during the day the information minister had supported the Punjab Assembly’s decision and said, “I feel the salaries of MPAs were very low. The monthly pay was Rs80,000 which was raised to Rs150,000.“If we do not take these steps, those belonging to the middle class will not contest the elections,” the information minister said. However later following a tweet by Prime Minister Imran Khan in which he expressed his disappointment over the move, Chaudhry tweeted, “Seems Punjab government and the CM House are in the dark about the PM and the federal government austerity policies otherwise such sham exercise of awarding huge benefits to themselves would not have happened.

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