Pakistani leader opposes Taliban ousting Indians

New Delhi, May 16: Maulana Fazlur Rehman, leader of the opposition in the Pakistan National Assembly, today dismissed Talibans demand that Indians leave the strife-torn Afghanistan, stating that Indian technicians and professionals were enganged there in the rehabilitation and reconstruction programme and not in conflict management.

''If the Indians are involved in the reconstruction work, they should not be disturbed by the Talibans,'' Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who heads Jamait-Ulemai Islam of Pakistan, told reporters here this morning.

The Maulana, ''who is accompanied by senior parliamentarians of Mutahida Majlis Amal (MMA), however, opposed the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan.'' If Talibans are opposing the presence of U S troops in Afghanistan, they have every right to do so.

He condemned the killing of indian engineer K Suryanarayan in Afghanistan, saying it was purely an incident. It was easy to blame Pakistan's ISI for the killing of the Engineer. ''Unless the matter is fully investigated, it is premature to blame ISI for the killing.'' The Pakistan leader is expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and leaders of various political parties, besides muslim clerics.

UNI