LAHORE: (Friday, October 16, 2026): Speaker Punjab Assembly Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan has said that reading books promotes dialogue, reasoning, and creative thinking. He emphasized the need to address the rising prices of books and publishing costs to make books more accessible to young people. He expressed these views while visiting various stalls on the second day of Pakistan’s largest three-day book fair, organized by the University of the Punjab. PU VC Prof Dr. Muhammad Ali, senior faculty members, administrative officials, and a large number of students were also present on the occasion.

Speaking to the media, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan highlighted the importance of PU’s literary festival and book fair. He described the festival as being like Eid for him and praised the efforts of Dr. Muhammad Ali. He said he had never seen such a comprehensive book fair and expressed his gratitude to the Vice Chancellor for promoting activities that demonstrate a society’s vitality. He added that the keen interest and confidence displayed by students were encouraging and that other universities should also promote similar activities. He noted that several well-known bookstores in Lahore were gradually disappearing or being replaced by other businesses. He said that while digital reading and artificial intelligence had their own significance, human creativity, critical thinking, and intellectual capacity remained fundamentally important. He stressed the need to strengthen society’s ability to tolerate differences of opinion, listen to others, and present one’s viewpoint through reasoned argument. According to him, reading books and participating in literary activities play an important role in the intellectual development of young people and in building a balanced society. He said it was wrong to label young people as misguided. Young people have dreams, he noted, and they must be provided with education, employment, modern skills, and opportunities for advancement to help them achieve those aspirations. He said that political stability, economic improvement, and peace were essential for securing a bright future for the younger generation. Providing young people with opportunities to participate in positive activities and express their creativity, he said, would enable society to make better use of their abilities. Commenting on the government’s position in favour of imposing Governor’s Rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan said the stance was based on concerns regarding the province’s security situation, the performance of its provincial government, and the utilization of resources allocated for counterterrorism. He said he had listened to the parliamentary debate and speeches on the matter. According to him, members of the ruling parties and their allies had raised concerns about the spread of terrorism, the provincial government’s performance, and the use of funds allocated to combat terrorism. He emphasized that preventing the spread of terrorism and restoring peace in affected areas were essential. He further stated that genuine reforms required state powers to be exercised by elected representatives in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution, ensuring that they could be held accountable. He added that the desired reforms would not be possible without fundamental changes to bureaucratic powers and the administrative culture. Speaking about national security, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan said that several generations of Pakistanis had grown up under the threat of terrorism. He observed that attacks on courts, hospitals, educational institutions, markets, and public transport had severely affected society. He said the Pakistan Armed Forces, the Prime Minister, and Parliament were taking effective measures to eliminate terrorism and free future generations from an atmosphere of fear, enabling them to enjoy a safer future. He emphasized that national security was of fundamental importance, adding that a secure country would create better prospects for progress in politics, the economy, and other sectors. More than 45,000 books were sold on the first day of the book fair. PU book fair will be continued tomorrow.