ISLAMABAD: Pakistan government was forced to drop a move to seek parliament’s support for action against militants in the wake of the Taliban attack on teenage rights activist Malala Yousufzai, due to stiff opposition from PML-N of former PM Nawaz Sharif. The PPP-led ruling coalition dropped its plans to introduce a resolution in the National Assembly on Wednesday after opposition from the PML-N. Sources said the resolution called for “practical measures” against militants after the shooting of the 14-year-old schoolgirl.
Senior PML-N leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the leader of opposition, said the resolution was a precursor to a military operation in the Waziristan tribal region though Mualana Fazlullah, considered the mastermind of the attack on Malala, was hiding in Kunar province of Afghanistan. Khan also accused the government of failing to implement previous parliamentary resolutions aimed at tackling militancy. Religious affairs minister Khursheed Ahmed Shah rejected Khan’s allegations and said there was no mention of Waziristan in the proposed resolution. He said the PML-N could make changes to the draft or move a separate resolution on the issue. However, Khan insisted that the government merely wanted to get the opposition’s mandate to launch an operation in North Waziristan.