ISLAMABAD: (Parliament Times) Defence Minister Khawaja Asif demanded a parliamentary commission on recent controversy stirred by former ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani, who claimed that Pakistan allowed CIA operatives on its soil to track down the then Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.
In a recent piece in Washington Post, Haqqani alleged that the civilian government led by the Pakistan People’s Party had given visas to the US spy agency operatives so that they could hunt for Osama bin Laden, and it eventually led to the OBL raid by US Navy SEALS on May 2, 2011.
Haqqani in his no-holds-barred article added that the then civilian government had not informed the military over these developments.
Asif while addressing a session in the National Assembly on Wednesday said that Haqqani has named then president Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in his article, and the opposition was trying to bury the allegations by merely labeling Haqqani as a “traitorâ€.
“The matter is not that simple,†he said.
Leader of the Opposition and PPP stalwart Khursheed Shah said that a joint parliamentary commission should be made over the claims. “We want the issue to be investigated. It will only strengthen the parliament.â€
Haqqani’s claims have caused an uproar in Pakistan, with even some of his former party fellows rebuffing them and painting him as a traitor.
Speaking in programme Capital Talk, Haqqani stood by his statement and said he had not revealed anything news in his article. He said that he gave the visas as per the procedure during his tenure.