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- April 23, 2024
- Kainat Shakeel
- 0
ISLAMABAD: The opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) made a surprising show of conciliation in the National Assembly on Monday by offering “cooperation and constructive engagement” in the parliamentary proceedings. The government also made a significant gesture of goodwill by lifting the ban on the entry of the two PTI lawmakers, whom the speaker had banned due to their disruptive behavior during the joint sitting of parliament last week. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar submitted the resolution to remove the suspension decision against PTI MNAs Jamshed Dasti and Muhammad Iqbal Khan. Following conciliatory remarks from members on both sides of the aisle, the proposal was easily approved by the House by voice vote.
For “eroding the sanctity” of the assembly by “engaging in rowdy behavior” during President Asif Zardari’s address to the joint sitting of parliament on April 18, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has suspended the membership of the two legislators for the balance of the current term. After requesting the house’s acceptance of a motion through a voice vote, the speaker rendered his decision. On Monday, he repeated the same procedure to revoke his earlier order. There was a surprising improvement in relations, which gave MPs hope for a more peaceful and effective legislative session. Shahid Khattak, a ferocious PTI MNA from Karak, stated in his address that this cooperation might not last long or that it might have been a calculated ploy to avoid having the standing committees formed first.
Speaking on a point of order, Mr. Khattak declared shortly before the session was adjourned until Tuesday evening that they would not allow this house to convene until their founding leader, Imran Khan, was released from prison. We are receiving lessons, or Bhaashan, that instruct us on how to manage this house. We would not allow this house to continue if Imran Khan is not freed, MNA Khattak said. He threatened to keep calling people who had gained power by vote-rigging “mandate thieves and vote thieves” if it were wrong to do so.
Following his statement, PPP legislator Shazia Marri addressed the floor and stated that it appeared some lawmakers were against the people’s issues being discussed at this assembly. She said it was improper to associate someone’s release with the operation of parliament. Additionally, she chastised the opposition members for their boisterous objections during Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari’s oath-taking, telling the house that certain members had tried to “sabotage the constitutional process” of the ceremony. During a meeting with the delegation of opposition members in his chamber, Omar Ayub Khan, the leader of the opposition, first asked the speaker to review the decision to suspend the two PTI parliamentarians.
The PTI leader went on to discuss the supposed tampering with the April 21 by-elections. According to Aamir Dogar, the head whip for the PTI, documenting their protests in parliament is a democratic right, and they will keep doing so. He reminded them that during the protests in the previous assembly, the opposition members had also brought whistles and trumpets, but Asad Qaiser, the speaker at the time, had shown forbearance and taken no action against them. Mr. Dogar requested that the speaker revoke the suspension orders for both lawmakers, saying that the opposition members were willing to join the house business advisory committee to explore methods to enhance the assembly’s climate. He conveyed his expectation that the speaker would act to bring members from both sides together to enhance the atmosphere.
In addition to welcoming the visiting Iranian president, the opposition party’s main whip praised Iran for providing a “befitting response” to Israel, calling it “the biggest terrorist” in the world. Speaker Ayaz Sadiq explained that he informed the Iranian president that he would be attending the meeting with a parliamentary team that included representatives from all political parties. He expressed his satisfaction that, despite internal divisions, the opposition and the government sent the Iranian president a “positive message” emphasizing their unity for the sake of Pakistan and their honoring of the guests. Naveed Qamar of the PPP and Azam Nazeer Tarar, the PML-N’s law minister, praised the opposition’s offer of collaboration and supported its insistence that the two PTI MNAs’ disciplinary action be dropped.