The Punjab government on Monday made it clear that Rangers will not be given special policing powers but limited to conducting joint operations with the provincial Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) against terrorists in the province. The provincial apex committee, chaired by Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday decided to seek assistance from Rangers in carrying out joint operations against terrorists in the province.
It was however expressly stated in the meeting that the exact procedure on how to utilize the Rangers' help in countering terrorism will be laid out later. Talking to Business Recorder Malik Mohammad Ahmad Khan, special assistant to Chief Minister Punjab and spokesman for the provincial government said that the Rangers will not be given special policing powers and their services will be availed only by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) for joint operations in the province.
"Rangers will conduct joint operations with CTD and its services will be utilised only for combating terrorists in the province but with no special policing powers," he said, adding a committee headed by Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif has also been constituted which will further determine the operational functionalities of the Rangers. Lieutenant General Talat Masood (retd) while talking to Business Recorder said the Punjab government is trying to appease both the military establishment and its lobby which is against involvement of Rangers in the operations in the province.
"I think they are trying to satisfy both their own lobby which does not want involvement of Rangers and at the same time it also cannot annoy the military...it's a sort of compromise to please the military as well as their constituency," he said, adding the provincial government would want to use the Rangers only in certain areas where they also want some terrorist elements to be eliminated.
Lieutenant General Talat Masood (retd) maintained that the military wants to firm up its standing in the province and would then go after the terror outfits and their supporters, facilitators and financers. "Once the military is there [Punjab] on the ground, it would be hard for the provincial government to keep it in its control," he added. Brigadier Mehmood Shah (retd), a senior analyst, said that terror outfits based in Punjab especially the sectarian terror organisations like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) need to be eliminated.
He said the LeJ has joined hands with the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) splinter groups such as Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which claimed responsibility for the recent terror attacks in Lahore, Mohmand Agency and Peshawar. "Terror organisations like LeJ are the ones who facilitate the TTP and its splinter outfits in carrying out such attacks in Pakistan," he said, adding such entities need no mercy or compromise but a full-fledged military action.
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