Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani today spoke to Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain on phone and discussed with him issues regarding Sindh Assembly’s incident.

According to a statement issued from MQM’s London Secretariat, Prime Minster Gilani has regretted the inappropriate behavior of PPP provincial ministers during the Sindh Assembly’s session.

Speaking to Altaf Hussain, the premier said that President Asif Ali Zardari, taking strict notice of the incident, reprimanded provincial ministers Agha Siraj Durrani and Zulfiqar Ali Mirza and stopped them from making any provocative statement.

Gilani said he met with President Zardari immediately after the Sindh Assembly’s chaos and informed him about the unfortunate incident. The prime minister deplored that better atmosphere of reconciliation created after President Zardari’s meeting with MQM was spoiled.

“President Asif Ali Zardari has reprimanded Agha Siraj Durrani and Zulfiqar Ali Mirza in front of me. We all want to go along together, but you two are destroying my reconciliatory policy,” Gilani told Altaf.

The prime minister continued: “I have no doubt in my mind that we will be partners in future also and we don’t want to waste our strength by opposing the MQM.”

He opined that the PPP-MQM alliance had given a strength to the business community.

Meanwhile, MQM chief Altaf Hussain thanked the Prime Minister for taking immediate notice of the incident and assured that he would ask his party to maintain policy of reconciliation.

Police investigation of an accidental death of the retired army officer, who was struck by the motorcade of the Chief Secretary of Punjab, last week, is being termed ‘partial’ and ‘unfair’ by Pakistani media.

Issue has become so intense that Governor of Punjab Salman Taseer had to personally visit the residence of the victim. Talking to media afterwards Salman Taseer said that there seems to be “the law of jungle” prevalent in the province he is supposed to govern.

Colonel Retired Muhammad Ikram died in CM Hospital Lahore after he was allegedly hit by Punjab Chief Secretary Javed Mehmood’s car. Col Muhammad Ikram (retired), was on his way to the Allama Iqbal University sub-campus on a motorcycle when he was allegedly struck by the car of Chief Secretary Javed Mahmood near Girja Chowk in Lahore.

The chief secretary was returning from Lahore airport after seeing-off Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani .

According to media reports Chief Secretary Javed Mehmood left the retired colonel critically injured on the road. After the hit-and-run incident , the victim was rushed to CM Hospital where he died.

Azam Ikram, son of the deceased, told an Urdu language news channel “Express News” that his family will spare no expense, and knock every door to seek justice.

The investigation team, probing into the death of Colonel (Retd) Ikram was quick in declaring the Chief Secretary Punjab and his driver ‘not guilty’.

Family of the deceased has declared the investigations ‘partial’ and ‘un-fair’.

The investigation team declared the Chief Secretary and his driver ‘not guilty’ as their vehicle was withing speed limit, and alleged that Col Ikram had violated the traffic signal. The report also claims that the traffic warden and gunmen of the Chief Secretary took the injured Colonel to the CM Hospital.

The family of the deceased remains unsatisfied as they were not included in the investigation. Azam Ikram, son of late Col Ikram said, “justice cannot be served till the Chief Secretary is removed from his post.”

Punjab Chief Secretary Javed Mehmood’s car, involved in the accident was impounded by the police for investigations after media questioned why was the motorcycle held by the authority and not Chief Secretary’s car.

Following criticism by the media Lahore Police has arrested driver allegedly responsible for the accident.

Talking to media after visiting victim’s residence Governor Salman Taseer said that the Chief Secretary should be suspended and an independent inquiry should be carried out to probe the death of retired Army Officer.

Answering to a question, the governor said that he could not understand why the Chief Secretary was in such a hurry.

Criticizing the inquiry team probing the incident, Salman Taseer said that even FIR was not registered which is the right of every citizen

President Asif Zardari is leaving for Syria on a three-day visit on Thursday to offer his condolence on the death of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s younger brother Majid al-Assad, who passed away last month.

The president will also visit Dubai on his return from Damascus. He will visit Turkey in the last week of this month, where preparations are underway in Ankara to host a new trilateral summit with Afghanistan and Pakistan, to be followed by a regional conference on Afghanistan with the participation of neighbours of the war-torn country.

At the trilateral summit, President Abdullah Gull, Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai and Asif Ali Zardari will discuss host of issues. The summit is expected to take place at the end of this month, diplomatic sources told media here on Saturday.

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani cancelled his trip to Devos to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) as an austerity measure. The participation to the WEF annual meeting is by invitation only and strictly limited to the criteria and quota of each stakeholder group.

Prime Minister Gilani is designating a federal minister to represent Pakistan in the WEF, the sources said. President Zardari would visit Dubai second time in a fortnight, the sources said.

Chief Minister Punjab Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, signaling an abject sugar crisis looming over Pakistan, has asked Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani to get the directives issued to Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCoP) for import of sugar in the earliest possible ease, Geo news reported on Wednesday (30-Dec-09).

In a letter written to PM Gilani, CM Punjab said sugar mills are producing sugar below production capacity owing to low supply of sugar cane, which might result in shortage of 1.2 metric tonnes of sugar in 2010.

He also voiced serious concern over likely surge in sugar prices by dint of shortage in markets, which is already selling at Rs53 in Punjab provin

RAWALPINDI: The PPP Punjab President Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan and senior provincial minister Raja Riaz Ahmad Khan have declared that enough is enough and from now on, the party would adopt the course of confrontation instead of the traditional conciliatory policy so far adopted.

They said Kamran Khan, Shaheen Sehbai, Ansar Abbasi and Dr Shahid Masood should not become movers and shakers in politics. The hands of those who are attempting to demolish the government would be amputated.

They were talking at the PPP provincial secretariat in Lahore on Monday after presiding over the meeting of the party’s executive council, federal council, district presidents and general secretaries. They said right from the beginning our politics had been based on ideology.

They warned that those targeting the Aiwan-e-Sadr and residing in palaces built of glass would not be spared. They said the PPP had offered tremendous sacrifices for democracy and the country’s security. Now that we are in power it is because of the leadership of Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari.

Raja Riaz said power to the PPP had not come through charity but because of a heavy mandate given by the people. Criticizing Geo TV channel, he warned Kamran Khan and Dr. Shahid Masood to avoid becoming champions of politics. The hands of those who tried to dismantle the democratic government will be amputated.

Expressing complete confidence in the party leadership Raja Riaz said the PPP is facing a media trial but everyone must know that the party and Pakistan are inseparable.

PPP leaders also criticised Shaheen Sehbai, Group Editor of The News, and Ansar Abbasi, Editor Investigations of The News for their writings. It was alleged that Ansar Abbasi writes an elegy every day.

Earlier while addressing the meeting, PPP Punjab General Secretary Samiullah Khan said the party of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed would not be run according to “Terey, Merey Mutabiq” but the aspirations of the people. Lambasting Geo television channel, he said out of the 841 NRO beneficiaries only one man and the Swiss case was being singled out. Samiullah said the PPP would resist if the judiciary oversteps its constitutional mandate.

The PPP Punjab President Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan warned each and every organisation to confine their activities within the given parameters. He said we are not afraid of jails or police stations as we consider them as medals. Rana Aftab lambasted the intriguers and others who had launched criticism of the party leadership and said henceforth they will be confronted with full force