President, PFUJ Pervez Shaukat was the chief guest on the occasion. Those who addressed the condolence reference were included Speaker NWFP Assembly, Kiramatullah Khan, senior ministers Rahimdad Khan, Bashir Ahmad Bilour, Provincial Minister for Information, Mian Iftikhar Hussein, Dr Said Alam Mehsud (Aman Tehrik), Abdul Jalil Jan (JUI-F), Mukhtiar Yusufzai (PAMP), Haji Habibullah Khan (TUJ) and senior journalist and president of Abasin Columnist Association, Salahuddin and others.
They said the sudden death of Sohail Qalandar was a great loss for the journalists' community. Paying tributes to Suhail Ahmad Qalandar, NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussein, who was also a close friend of the late journalist, said that he was not only a brave and patriotic journalist but also a good person in his life. Suhail Ahmad Qalandar, he said had played important role in the war against militancy adding that that the services of late Qalandar will be remembered for a long time in the field of journalism.
He said that Qalandar was like his brother and he was always giving him good suggestions. Qalandar belonged to a poor family of Mardan and through his dedication with education and profession he achieved position in the society and in the media as well.
Mian Iftikhar Hussein, who is also the official spokesman of the provincial government claimed that Qalandar was the first person of the journalist community, who raised voice against the Taliban militants openly and started writing articles and spoke openly in various talk shows against the Taliban atrocities and injustice in the society.
He said that in the on going war against Taliban the ANP was the most sufferer political party as besides suicide attacks on its chief Asfandyar Wali Khan and attacks on Afrasyab Khattak and Afzal Khan Lala its two MPAs Alam Zeb and Shamshir Ali Khan were martyred and more than 300 ANP workers were killed in Malakand division by militants.
The ANP minister said that PPP late chairperson Benazir Bhutto also sacrificed her life for democracy, saying the present democratic government has been established due to the sacrifice of Benazir Bhutto. "The blood of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto is included in the current democratic system of the country," he went on to add.
PPP NWFP Senior Minister Rahim Dad Khan also paid rich tribute to Sohail Qalandar, saying he was having personnel relation with Suhail Qalandar and he was a nice and kind person. Speaker NWFP Assembly, Kiramatullah Khan while remembering Qalandar said that he was a self-made and positive thinking journalist.
He, however, said that NWFP and especially Peshawar was greatly affected by the terrorists' attacks. He said that the people of this city and Malakand division are facing the unbearable situation with great courage and soon they would enter into a new phase of life in which they would spend their life in peaceful environment. ANP Senior Minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour that the government is winning the war against terrorists as today the terrorists are hiding and the forces have started search operation against them for their elimination.
He said that 90 percent IDPs in the province have returned to their homes and the government had also issued cash cards of Rs 25,000 to all IDP families for provision of foods at their homes. He, however, said that for rehabilitation and reconstruction of IDPs the government has neither received any fund from Friends of Pakistan nor Rs 17 billion announced by the Federal government for rehabilitation and reconstruction of the IDPs. President, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Pervez Shaukat, Peshawar Press Club, President Shamim Shahid, and leaders of various political parties also addressed and remembered the services of deceased journalist.