Pak Punjab Assembly Speaker reluctant to condemn NATO strikes

West Punjab Assembly Speaker Afzal Sahi is not ready to condemn the attacks carried out by NATO forces on Pakistan-Afghanistan border in which several innocents Pakistanis were killed, though he is ready to fly to the US to to kill Salman Rushdie.

Lahore, June 26 : West Punjab Assembly Speaker Afzal Sahi is not ready to condemn the attacks carried out by NATO forces on Pakistan-Afghanistan border in which several innocents Pakistanis were killed, though he is ready to fly to the US to to kill Salman Rushdie.

This came to light during a Punjab Assembly's session when Sahi set aside a demand by the Opposition to pass a resolution condemning the NATO air strikes in Waziristan.

Agitated over the issue, the Opposition wanted the resolution passed, but the Speaker was in no mood to listen.

"Mr Speaker! You are ready to go to America to kill Salman Rushdie, but not willing to listen a word about the innocent people killed in Waziristan by NATO troops", asked Deputy Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly, Rana Sana.

"The government, instead of condemning the incident, is trying to protect the NATO forces, and we are staging a token walkout from assembly in protest", The Nation quoted Sana, as saying.

Earlier, Sahi has said that he would kill Rushdie if he came across him.

"Death is the only punishment for a blasphemer," said Sahi, and declared that according to Islam, a blasphemer should be killed and if any blasphemer would come in front of him, he would definitely kill him.

He said the issue of awarding a knighthood to Rushdie is a religious issue. Being a Muslim, he was not ready to compromise on the issue, he added.

ANI