LAHORE - The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday unanimously adopted a resolution condemning publication of blasphemous caricatures and French President Emmanuel Macron for his provocative statement.
The House witnessed chaos for the second consecutive day as legislators from across the political divide resorted to sloganeering. No significant business could be taken on Private Members Day as pandemonium forced the chair to adjourn the proceedings.
The session started two and half an hour behind the scheduled time with Speaker Ch Parvez Elahi in the chair.
Law Minister Raja Basharat presented the resolution condemning publication of blasphemous caricatures by the French Journal and provocative statement of President Emmanuel Macron that hurt sentiments of Muslims across the globe. The House unanimously passed the resolution to convey sentiments of people in the biggest province of the country. PML-N’s Khalil Tahir Sandhu demanded breaking diplomatic relations with France and calling back ambassador.
The House witnessed complete chaos as legislators from the opposition and treasury resorted to sloganeering after heated arguments over death of a protesting farmer due to alleged police torture.
No significant business on Private Members Day as pandemonium forces chair to adjourn proceedings
PPP Parliamentary Leader Syed Hassan Murtaza accused the police of man handling protesting farmers. He said that chemical mixed water was used against the poor farmers who contribute a lot in the economy. “Almost 80 % employment is associated with the agriculture and it is really unfortunate that farmers were beaten brutally,” he said. He added that a senior police officer was found giving instructions to the force not to let the farmers to approach The Mall and they must be stopped at any cost. He demanded a judicial commission to probe the sad incident while adding that the farmers were only staging a peaceful sit-in. He was of the view that farmers are not paid for their work sufficiently despite the fact that they are the backbone of economy. “Pakistan will be prosperous if our farmers are satisfied,” he said. The condolence prayer was also held for the departed soul.
Responding to the opposition lawmakers, Raja Basharat said the police were not responsible for death of farmer. He refused to admit that the farmer lost his life due to any torture by the police. The remarks of law minister provoked MPAs of opposition parties as they stood on their benches and started chanting slogans against the government. ‘Go Niazi Go’ slogans were raised from the opposition as they came from their seats while besieging the speaker’s dais. The sloganeering also infuriated the law minister as he said that the opposition could not speak this way if the version of government wasn’t listened to with patience. “Let’s see, how the opposition will talk this way. If we are disrupted like this then we’ll also stage walkout”, threatened law minister. A massive ruckus was seen in the House as both the treasury and opposition MPAs were chanting slogans against each other. Some key ministers of the government were also seen raising slogans against the leadership of the opposition. ‘Chor Chor’ and ‘Bring back the plunderers’ were the slogans chanted by the government ministers. The House was presenting a very unpleasant picture that the Speaker left with no option except to adjourn the session for Wednesday afternoon.
