Pak govt says will ensure ban on groups blacklisted by UN

Pakistan's government today said that all terror groups proscribed by the UN will remain banned in the country.
Last month, the Foreign Office had also said that Pakistan will follow UN guidelines to outlaw militant groups but questions were raised over efficacy of policy after outfits like Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) organised big public rallies on February 5 observed as 'Kashmir Day'.
Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan today tried to address the confusion while speaking on the floor of the National Assembly.
"There is some confusion regarding the list of banned outfits but I want to make it clear that the government will ban all proscribed organisations mentioned in the blacklist of the United Nations, as Pakistan is a signatory of the UN," he said.

But he quickly added that Pakistan was not under pressure from countries like India or US to launch a crackdown on the militants groups.
He said there was proper procedure to include groups in the list of banned organisations.

"According to the procedure, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs writes to the Ministry of Interior to put a ban on an organisation after the UN announcement to include such proscribed organisations in the blacklist," the minister said.
Last month the Supreme Court also directed the government to make the list of banned groups public so that people may know about the militants.

But according to sources, the PML-N government is reluctant to issue the list as wants to avoid confrontation with some powerful groups active in its base in Punjab.
"The government wants to do it softly as already its hands are full and it does not want any more trouble," said an official of the interior ministry.