ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Federal Cabinet on Tuesday accorded an approval to reconstitute the National Commission for Minorities, fulfilling a long-awaited demand of the minorities in Pakistan to grant them more representation in the Commission.
Briefing the media about the decision taken by the Federal Cabinet which met in Islamabad with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the Chair, the Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said that the new Commission will have a minority member as its head.
Prior to it, the Minister for Religious Affairs used to head the National Commission for Minorities as its Chairman.
The Special Assistant said that as per the decision of the Cabinet, the Commission now will have more representatives from minorities than Muslims.
Dr. Firdous said that the non-official members of the Commission will include two Muslims namely Maulana Khabir Azad and Mufti Gulzar Ahmed Naeemi, three Christians, two Hindus, one Sikh, one Parsi and one member from Kalash.
وفاقی کابینہ کا اجلاس اسلام آباد میں جاری ہے۔وزیراعظم عمران خان اجلاس کی صدارت کر رہے ہیں۔ اجلاس میں کورونا کی صورتحال سمیت ایجنڈے کے نکات پر غور کیا جا رہا ہے۔ pic.twitter.com/XMsPnc5n6D
— PTV News (@PTVNewsOfficial) April 21, 2020
Firdous Ashiq Awan said that during the meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan reiterated his resolve to ensure the protection of all rights of minorities in Pakistan as guaranteed by the Constitution.
The prime minister acknowledged the key role of all minorities in the prosperity and development of the Country; therefore, it was decided to ensure that they have their due Constitutional rights, the Special Assistant said.
However, a former local government representative from minorities in Rawalpindi, who spoke to the Dispatch News Desk (DND) on the condition of anonymity, termed it a hoax by the government.
The minority person said that they wanted the federal government to get the reconstitution of the National Commission for Minorities passed from the Parliament as it would have been more effective and result-oriented under a legal guarantee.
