Burney resigns at eleventh hour
ISLAMABAD – Succumbing to criticism on release of Kashmir Singh and failure in handling Khalid Mehmood’s case, caretaker Minister for Humans Rights Ansar Burney Friday resigned, just a day before the farewell meeting of the cabinet.
According to sources, Burney will not attend today’s meeting of the cabinet. Ostensibly, he retaliated to the Federal Law Ministry for not buying his proposal to accord the chairman of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) the status of a High Court judge.
The sources revealed that Burney was planning to grab the slot of chairman HRCP, the non-governmental slot he wanted to upgrade to the level of High Court judge, after relinquishing the charge as member of the interim cabinet. Kashmir Singh venture by the Burney was one of his efforts to become the human rights champion in Pakistan, the sources added.
Burney was demanding from Federal Law Ministry to give equal rights of a High Court judge to the chairman HRCP but the Law Ministry twice rejected the proposal. “On the rejection from Law Ministry, Burney also requested President Musharraf for the same purpose who again sought opinion of the Ministry that maintained its earlier stance of not accepting the proposal, thus apparently causing the resignation,” the sources revealed.
However, the release of Kashmir Singh cannot be ruled out as one of the main causes behind his resignation. The criticism on Kashmir Singh’s release increased when Kashmir admitted that he was an Indian spy. The critics of Burney were further furious upon juxtaposition of Kashmir SinghÂ’s release with the Indian dispatch of the dead body of Khalid Mehmood, who died of lethal torture in a jail by the Indian authorities.
Source: The Nation
Date:3/15/2008
” 
” 
” 
” 
