Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has claimed that the so-called 'Azadi March' by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) on October 31 has been planned for the freedom of thieves and "not for the freedom of Kashmiris."

Talking to media here on Saturday, she said, "Following the talks of Nawaz Sharif, Fazlur Rehman's cat is out of the bag now for the march. Maulana is not taking to the streets for the sake of oppressed people of Kashmir instead he aims for protecting the kings of corruption."

Dr Awan termed the political affiliation and moves between PML-N leaders Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif as games similar to those played by former Pakistani field hockey players Samiullah Khan and Kaleemullah Khan. She said both the brothers have been lobbing the ball to each other but neither of them has been successful in hitting a goal "because their goal posts are different." "Today's meeting in Model Town is a part of this play," she said.

Firdous urged Maulana Fazlur Rehman not to lockdown Islamabad for the sake of his political interests. She said the country was at the brink of collapse but the incumbent government with the help of friendly countries like China, Saudi Arabia, UAE and after IMF bailout package came out of crisis. She added that another challenge was FATF but the government introduced reforms and took stringent measures to tackle it.

She maintained that reforms were introduced in the FBR to achieve revenue targets and things are moving in right direction on economic front. Answering a question, she said the government may initiate talks with the opposition in the country's larger interest.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019