PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto on Wednesday branded former
president Pervez Musharraf as the 'killer' of his slain mother. He made
the accusation while addressing a large crowd of PPP supporters in Garhi
Khuda Bux, who were gathered to commemorate Benazir Bhutto's 10th death
anniversary.
Reiterating that he holds the man who
pulled her security — rather than the man who pulled the trigger
—responsible for Benazir's death, Bilawal cried "Qaatil! Qaatil! Musharraf qatil!" (Murderer, murderer; Musharraf's the murderer!) in front of a charged crowd as his sisters looked on.
Earlier,
he had told his supporters that Benazir had been punished for
propagating democracy and for her deep love for the people.
"My
leader [Benazir], you were punished for fighting against dictatorship
and presenting Islam's peaceful face to the world," Bilawal said. "You
were punished for fighting for women and speaking for the oppressed. You
were punished for loving the people."
Bilawal claimed
that despite their rivals' best efforts to spoil her good work, the
present-day PPP is working hard to continue her legacy.
"The
1973 Constitution, whose face was distorted by dictators, we've
restored it to its original form. You used to be upset at poverty, so we
started the Benazir Income Support Programme. We also allotted state
land to poor farmers. We have built heart, kidney and liver hospitals
everywhere, and treatment there is free of cost. You cared about the
environment so we also started wind energy plants in Sindh. We've built
dams to store water."
Bilawal also accused the incumbent
government of undoing Benazir's legacy, saying: "They've weakened the
democracy and parliament. Small provinces are being isolated from the
federal government. This is a murderous government."
He
also attached some blame of his mother's unresolved murder case on the
judiciary, saying: "The judiciary for whom you [Benazir] struggled, the
same judiciary hasn't given us, you, the victims of terror and missing
persons any justice."
"O custodians of justice, please give justice to someone," he said.
Earlier,
former president and party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari warned his
rivals that even though he tries not to indulge in the politics of
vengeance, he too has his limits.
"There is a conspiracy
still going on," he claimed. "The conspiracy is still hatching new eggs
— but our philosophy teaches patience. We have been patient, but I warn
our rivals: don't push us to our limits.You have always back-stabbed us
but we will not side with you this time. We will win the elections this
time. I will not forgive them. I will defeat them from Kashmir to
Gilgit-Baltistan."
