Share the details of Ehsanullah Ehsan’s escape: Pakistan Peoples Party to Imran Khan

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has sought to find out the status of former Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesperson Ehsanullah Ehsan after he had reportedly escaped from custody early this year.  

While speaking in the upper house of parliament, PPP’s parliamentary leader in the Senate, Senator Sherry Rehman asked, “Why is he not under anybody’s custody?”

In April of 2017, the military announced that Ehsan had surrendered himself to the security forces, but offered no details about the circumstances surrounding his capture or any conditions involved.

Earlier this year, Ehsan had reportedly escaped from custody and then released an an audio message on February 6, claiming that he had surrendered to the authorities “under an agreement”, but escaped after “Pakistan’s treacherous institutions imprisoned me, along with my children”.

Senator Rehman asked the government to share details of the entire episode, and asked as to who had set Ehsan free.

“He was the one who accepted responsibility (on behalf of the TTP) of Army Public School massacre in Peshawar,” she pointed out.

Referring to a tweet by Ehsan, in which he had said that PPP chairman would meet the fate of his mother, the senator said Prime Minister Imran Khan would be responsible if any harm came to Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.

She also criticized the prime minister for terming “a terrorist like Osama bin Laden a martyr”.

Meanwhile, a minister informed the house that the government had taken no decision yet about reducing the retirement age of government employees from 60 to 55 years and abolishing their pension benefits.

Responding to a call-attention notice, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan termed the reports about changes in the retirement age “misleading and unfounded”.

“As of today, the government has taken no decision regarding reduction in retirement age of government employees (and) no proposal has been received in this regard,” he told the house.

Earlier, senior PPP leader and chairman of the Senate Standing Commi­ttee on Interior Senator A. Rehman Malik said according to media reports there was considerable unease among government employees over reports regarding reduction in the retirement age.

He claimed that the government was working on the instructions of the Inter­national Monetary Fund (IMF), which had probably called for reducing the number of government employees.

Senator Malik, on the other hand, advised the government to refrain from taking “unwise steps” against the poor employees who had great expectations from their pension schemes.

The PPP senator said it was time for the country to come out of IMF’s influence.