Composition of MPs' body completed

ISLAMABAD With the nomination of Aftab Shaban Mirani and Ms Asma Arbab Allamgir the eight-member Parliamentary Committee, part of the apparatus to appoint judges in the superior judiciary, was completed. As the Judicial Commission under the head of Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry had already made the recommendation of Justice Ch Ejaz for the slot of Chief Justice Lahore High Court so the Parliamentary Committee would likely have its maiden meeting after Eid-ul-Azha to take up the case of Justice Ch Ejaz as under the rules the Parliamentary Committee was bound to take decision on the recommendations of the Judicial Commission within 14 days time. Muttahida Qoumi Movement and Awami National Party, the main coalition partners of the ruling Pakistan Peoples, had raised serious reservations on the nomination of treasury members in the eight members Parliamentary Committee and said that not only they were ignored but also not consulted while selecting of the treasury members for the committee. The leaders of both these parties said that they would definitely lodge their protest with the central leadership of the Pakistan Peoples Party for this indifference and would force them to at least take them on board while taking major policy decisions. According to statement of Presidential spokesman former Senator Farhatullah Babar the nominations of the two members from the National Assembly were made by the President Asif Ali Zardari on the recommendation of Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani. Before the finalisation of the names of Ms Asma Arbab Alamgir and Aftab Shahban Mirani, both President and Prime Minister had detailed discussion on the matter wherein it was further decided that the name of treasury member from Upper House of the Parliament Kazim Khan should be withdrawn to accommodate Senator Sabir Baloch so that all the four provinces could be given representation in the committee from treasury side. Now the two members each from treasury benches in both the houses included Leader of the House in Senate Syed Nayyar Bokhari from Punjab, Senator Sabir Baloch from Balochistan, MNA Aftab Shahban Mirani from Sindh and MNA Ms Asma Arbab Alamgir from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. From opposition side both Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and Pakistan Muslim League (Qauid-i-Azam) have one member each from both the houses of the Parliament. From PML-N side Senator Ishaq Dar and MNA Sardar Mehtab Khan Abbasi while PML-Q would be represented by Senator Ch Shujaat Hussain and MNA Ghous Bux Mehr in the committee. As the nomination of the members from opposition side was to be done by the leader of opposition in his respective house, PML-Q Leader of Opposition in the Upper House Wasim Sajjad had earlier given his and his party chief Ch Shujaat Hussains name for the committee but later on the persuasion of Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Ch Nisar Ali Khan, PML-Q had withdrawn the name of Wasim Sajjad to accommodate Senator Ishaq Dar of PML-N while PML-N reciprocated it in the National Assembly by giving room to PML-Q MNA Ghous Bux Mehr and hence both the opposition parties have even representation in both the houses of the Parliament.

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