First and foremost, I want to personally express my regrets to Federal Minister for Planning, Mr. Ahsan Iqbal. Recently, Mr. Iqbal’s valuable mobile phone was stolen in broad daylight by a petty thief. The minister was attending the funeral prayers of the PML-N MPA (Rana Afzal Hussain) in Sheikhupura when someone skillfully and discreetly lifted his phone from his pocket. Several national newspapers reported this incident.
What’s even more distressing is that thieves do not refrain from committing crimes even during funeral prayers, taking advantage of every opportunity. It also highlights that if the mobile phone of a high-profile PML-N politician like Mr. Iqbal can be stolen, then what is the status of the rest of us? Thieves do not stop their activities whether the occasion is one of joy or sorrow. I recall a similar incident involving my family: when a close relative, a military officer, was martyred while fighting terrorists in Waziristan, we went to Islamabad for his funeral prayers, only to find that thieves had stolen our entire meal and cooking pots.
Mr. Ahsan Iqbal is a politician who swings between good and bad fortunes. Most of our politicians face similar fates. Mr. Iqbal has proven to be fortunate in the sense that he has been elected several times as a member of the National Assembly from the PML-N platform and has served multiple terms as a federal minister. He has experienced the ups and downs of politics and has remained loyal to his party through every season and trial. His strong commitment to Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif has also brought him trials and tribulations, including an attack by a religious extremist.
Due to his deep commitment to the PML-N, he has faced imprisonment, court battles, and legal proceedings. Despite this, he remained unbroken and never abandoned his party or its leadership. During the 3.5-year tenure of the PTI founder, he faced severe hardships and was subjected to numerous baseless cases. The ‘NAB’ was also activated against him.
The most significant case against him was that he was accused of several irregularities in the construction of an international-standard sports complex in his constituency (Narowal). This accusation and allegation eventually led him to prison. The real aim of fabricating these cases was to separate him from the PML-N and Nawaz Sharif. Although the pressure from the Imran Khan government eventually led him to prison, he was not broken.
In December 2019, he was forced to sleep on the bare floor of a prison cell, even though he had recently undergone surgery on his arm. His captors showed no sensitivity. He spent over two months in detention but did not shed tears or make a fuss. Now, in the third week of August 2024, it has been reported that Mr. Ahsan Iqbal has been completely acquitted in the so-called Narowal Sports Complex scandal. After four years, Islamabad’s Accountability Court has dismissed the reference against Mr. Iqbal filed by NAB.
While his enemies are mourning his acquittal, Mr. Iqbal, his family, the PML-N, and his supporters are pleased and grateful to their Lord. The question remains: who will return the valuable four years that were wasted for Mr. Iqbal? How will the damage caused by the continuous humiliation in courts, the attempts to tarnish his political and personal image in the media, and the social harm be compensated? Who will heal the wounds inflicted upon him?
Today, Mr. Iqbal, like other PML-N leaders who faced imprisonment during the PTI era, and like Asif Ali Zardari who spent years in various jails under diverse allegations, continues to question this injustice. Despite their release, the harm inflicted remains.
Different forces have used condemnable tactics against politicians to bring them to heel. How long will such tactics continue to be employed? How long will public paths be obstructed? It is also surprising that when Mr. Ahsan Iqbal launched the Narowal Sports Complex project in 2009, the government was led by the PPP and PML-N was in opposition. At that time, Mr. Iqbal was merely a PML-N MNA and had obtained approval for the sports complex from PPP’s Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani.
This sports complex was considered an extraordinary facility not just for Narowal and its division but for the entire Punjab and Pakistan, designed to meet international standards. It was meant to host every type of sport at a global level and provide modern training facilities for Pakistani athletes. It was to be constructed on 46 acres of land on Narowal-Muridke Road, with an estimated cost of around 3 billion rupees.
Although the Narowal Sports Complex was completed, its full potential could not be utilized because the PTI government came into power. As Mr. Iqbal faced jail and court proceedings, the complex fell into neglect and disrepair. If the PTI government had utilized the sports complex instead of imprisoning Mr. Iqbal, Pakistan might have returned from the recent Paris Olympics with multiple gold medals rather than just one. After being acquitted and reappointed as a minister, Mr. Iqbal is now focusing on renovating and enhancing the Narowal Sports Complex. It is hoped that this time no obstacles will impede his progress, and soon international-level sports and athletes will be hosted at this complex, which would be a significant achievement for Mr. Iqbal.