PPP furious over Rashid’s ‘threat’ to Bilawal

Reacting strongly to Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid’s “threat” to party chairman Bilawal, several leaders of the Pakistan Peoples Party have announced that they would not ignore his statement and might take legal action against him.

“From delivering hate speeches in the past, the minister is now hurling a direct death threat at Bilawal. Though threats of extremist right wingers to Bilawal are not new, for a cabinet member giving an open death threat to someone whose entire family was killed, is disgusting,” Bilawal’s sister Bakhtawar said in a tweet.

In response to Bilawal’s press conference in the Sindh Assembly building, Rashid tweeted: “Bilawal should play carefully in politics otherwise he may be eliminated.”

PPP’S central information secretary Dr Nafisa Shah said the party would not ignore Rashid’s threat to Bilawal.

“Rashid has been a facilitator of terrorist organisations in the past and that is why his statements cannot be ignored as mere mockery. Our struggle and patience should not be seen as a weakness.”

She said the PPP workers would protect their chairman. Referring to “anti-ppp steps” taken by the government, she said that on the one hand a reference filed by Asif Ali Zardari about judicial murder of Zulfikar Ali Bhuto was still pending before a court of law, and on the other, killers of former prime minister Benazir Bhuto had been released.

“The concocted case of money laundering against Zardari has been transferred to Rawalpindi and now a threat by Rashid to Bilawal is all indicating that there are links between all of them. Rashid is a spokesman for several quarters, including terrorists, and that is why the PPP is taking his threat very seriously. The nation will not tolerate such criminal acts,” Shah said.

PPP’S Punjab secretary general Chaudhry Manzoor said the party would consult legal team to file a case against Rashid for hurling the “death threat” at Bialwal.