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| India-Pakistan |
| 'NGOs given funds to influence elections' |
| 2002-08-16 |
| Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal president Maulana Shah Ahmed Noorani alleged on Thursday that various NGOs had received Rs800 million from various foreign countries to have people of their own choice elected to parliament. He said at a news conference at the residence of MMA information secretary Pir Ijaz Hashmi that the money had been transferred to the bank accounts of the NGOs and the government had been informed accordingly. He said an inquiry had been ordered by the government. That's interesting. I don't think he's talking about the Soddy money behind the fundo groups... The Maulana said secular forces wanted the 1973 Constitution abrogated and the blasphemy laws repealed. However, he said, the MMA would defeat such forces in the elections. Never know when you might want to bring a charge of blasphemy against somebody you want bumped off... In his opinion the October elections were going to be a contest between secular, pro-US forces and the ones which wanted to uphold the supremacy of the 1973 constitution and bring about Islamic system. The MMA chief alleged that vested interests were also involved in terrorist activities to influence the general elections programme. "Vested interests" presumably other than the lovable clerics running MMA... |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |