I Says Hamza’s election not conducted as per law
I Insists there is no constitutional crisis in Punjab
LAHORE - Punjab Assembly Speaker Ch Parvez Elahi called off Thursday’s Assembly sitting at the eleventh hour without assigning any plausible reason apparently in a bid to prolong the voting process on the no-trust motions filed against him and the Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari.
The speaker had earlier convened the sitting for voting on the no-trust motion against the deputy speaker, but it was cancelled half an hour before its commencement on the odd excuse of alleged police harassment of the Assembly officers.
The police on Thursday arrested Secretary Coordination Punjab Assembly Inayat Ullah Lak in front of the Governor House at around 9 am when he was on his way to the Lahore High Court to attend a court hearing. Police said he had been detained under 3MPO.
Punjab Assembly sources, however, said that there was no plan to hold the voting on the no-trust motion against the deputy speaker on Thursday even if the meeting had taken place. The PTI and the PML-Q had plans to disrupt the Assembly proceedings by attacking some PML-N MPAs to cause a commotion in the house and to make justification for postponement of the sitting, confided the sources who also said that it had also been decided to keep the press gallery closed for journalist to hide the ugly happenings inside the house. Given the numbers game in the Punjab Assembly, the government alliance knew full well even before calling the session that if the motion is put to vote, it would be defeated since the joint opposition had already made its decision known to support Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari in the no-trust motion against him. If this had been the case, the voting on the no-trust motion against the speaker would have become due in the very next sitting of the Assembly, and he would have lost the Assembly speakership owing to lack of numbers.
In this background, Thursday’s sitting was postponed under a pre-planned and well thought out strategy to delay the voting on the no-trust motion against the speaker to gain time till an ECP decision regarding the PTI dissidents who are most likely to be de-seated under the defection clause of the Constitution. Though the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has fixed May 6 for hearing on the disqualification references sent by the speaker against 26 PTI dissidents who voted for Hamza Shehbaz in the chief minister’s election, the ECP is not bound to announce the decision on that day. The ECP has already made it clear that it will decide within 30 days as required under the Constitution.
The PTI is, however, exerting pressure on the ECP to decide the fate of the dissident MPAs as early as possible to dent the Opposition’s majority in Punjab Assembly. An early decision by the ECP will not only make Hamza’s election as CM controversial, Ch Parvez Elahi will also survive the no-trust motion while the deputy speaker will be voted out. But, if the ECP takes 30 days to fulfill the constitutional requirement, the PML-N would have its own Governor in Punjab in the meantime since the maximum 25 days’ timeline a president can withhold the prime minister’s summary to appoint a new governor will end before this period. And, if the PML-N has its governor in the province, he can call the Assembly session immediately for voting on the no-trust motions.
Ch Parvez Elahi later told the media that Punjab Assembly officers were being illegally harassed by the police.
He said some of the officers had been arrested while many more officers were being raided by the police for arrest. “During the April 16, 2022, session, the police broke into the House and assaulted the members of the Assembly. One of our women MPAs is in a life and death struggle on a ventilator in the ICU due to torture by the police.”
“Today’s meeting was not possible due to the unforeseen circumstances. In the current situation, the meeting has been adjourned till May 16 at 11:30am,” he observed, adding that it was his discretionary right to decide when to summon the session. “Please read the Assembly rules of procedure,” he told a reporter who questioned his decision to cancel the Assembly sitting.
Parvez Elahi maintained that Hamza Shehbaz’s election was not conducted as per the law as the deputy speaker completed the whole process while sitting in the visitor’s gallery instead of speaker’s chair. He disagreed with the view that there was any constitutional crisis in Punjab due to the delay in oath taking of Chief Minister Elect-Hamza Shehbaz Sharif. He argued that Sardar Usman Buzdar was the constitutional chief executive of the province with all the powers in his hands. Citing the ex-governor’s orders, Parvez said that the incumbent chief minister continues to act as chief minister till the oath taking of the new chief minister.
The speaker held PM Shehbaz Sharif, Hamza Shehbaz and IGP responsible for the current situation in Punjab. Elahi came down hard on the Sharifs alleging that they had become worse in the last three and half years though he had been supporting them in this period and issued production orders of their MPAs.
Accusing the PML-N of using the IGP to interfere in Assembly matters, the PA speaker said that the Sharifs hadshown their true face to the people. He also accused the LHC of interfering in Assembly proceedings. “If they want to assume the role of a legislature, they should come sit here”, he remarked. He said PM Shehbaz Sharif was controlling Punjab through the chief secretary and the IGP, an act which was against the provincial autonomy given in the 18th amendment.
I Insists there is no constitutional crisis in Punjab
LAHORE - Punjab Assembly Speaker Ch Parvez Elahi called off Thursday’s Assembly sitting at the eleventh hour without assigning any plausible reason apparently in a bid to prolong the voting process on the no-trust motions filed against him and the Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari.
The speaker had earlier convened the sitting for voting on the no-trust motion against the deputy speaker, but it was cancelled half an hour before its commencement on the odd excuse of alleged police harassment of the Assembly officers.
The police on Thursday arrested Secretary Coordination Punjab Assembly Inayat Ullah Lak in front of the Governor House at around 9 am when he was on his way to the Lahore High Court to attend a court hearing. Police said he had been detained under 3MPO.
Punjab Assembly sources, however, said that there was no plan to hold the voting on the no-trust motion against the deputy speaker on Thursday even if the meeting had taken place. The PTI and the PML-Q had plans to disrupt the Assembly proceedings by attacking some PML-N MPAs to cause a commotion in the house and to make justification for postponement of the sitting, confided the sources who also said that it had also been decided to keep the press gallery closed for journalist to hide the ugly happenings inside the house. Given the numbers game in the Punjab Assembly, the government alliance knew full well even before calling the session that if the motion is put to vote, it would be defeated since the joint opposition had already made its decision known to support Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari in the no-trust motion against him. If this had been the case, the voting on the no-trust motion against the speaker would have become due in the very next sitting of the Assembly, and he would have lost the Assembly speakership owing to lack of numbers.
In this background, Thursday’s sitting was postponed under a pre-planned and well thought out strategy to delay the voting on the no-trust motion against the speaker to gain time till an ECP decision regarding the PTI dissidents who are most likely to be de-seated under the defection clause of the Constitution. Though the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has fixed May 6 for hearing on the disqualification references sent by the speaker against 26 PTI dissidents who voted for Hamza Shehbaz in the chief minister’s election, the ECP is not bound to announce the decision on that day. The ECP has already made it clear that it will decide within 30 days as required under the Constitution.
The PTI is, however, exerting pressure on the ECP to decide the fate of the dissident MPAs as early as possible to dent the Opposition’s majority in Punjab Assembly. An early decision by the ECP will not only make Hamza’s election as CM controversial, Ch Parvez Elahi will also survive the no-trust motion while the deputy speaker will be voted out. But, if the ECP takes 30 days to fulfill the constitutional requirement, the PML-N would have its own Governor in Punjab in the meantime since the maximum 25 days’ timeline a president can withhold the prime minister’s summary to appoint a new governor will end before this period. And, if the PML-N has its governor in the province, he can call the Assembly session immediately for voting on the no-trust motions.
Ch Parvez Elahi later told the media that Punjab Assembly officers were being illegally harassed by the police.
He said some of the officers had been arrested while many more officers were being raided by the police for arrest. “During the April 16, 2022, session, the police broke into the House and assaulted the members of the Assembly. One of our women MPAs is in a life and death struggle on a ventilator in the ICU due to torture by the police.”
“Today’s meeting was not possible due to the unforeseen circumstances. In the current situation, the meeting has been adjourned till May 16 at 11:30am,” he observed, adding that it was his discretionary right to decide when to summon the session. “Please read the Assembly rules of procedure,” he told a reporter who questioned his decision to cancel the Assembly sitting.
Parvez Elahi maintained that Hamza Shehbaz’s election was not conducted as per the law as the deputy speaker completed the whole process while sitting in the visitor’s gallery instead of speaker’s chair. He disagreed with the view that there was any constitutional crisis in Punjab due to the delay in oath taking of Chief Minister Elect-Hamza Shehbaz Sharif. He argued that Sardar Usman Buzdar was the constitutional chief executive of the province with all the powers in his hands. Citing the ex-governor’s orders, Parvez said that the incumbent chief minister continues to act as chief minister till the oath taking of the new chief minister.
The speaker held PM Shehbaz Sharif, Hamza Shehbaz and IGP responsible for the current situation in Punjab. Elahi came down hard on the Sharifs alleging that they had become worse in the last three and half years though he had been supporting them in this period and issued production orders of their MPAs.
Accusing the PML-N of using the IGP to interfere in Assembly matters, the PA speaker said that the Sharifs hadshown their true face to the people. He also accused the LHC of interfering in Assembly proceedings. “If they want to assume the role of a legislature, they should come sit here”, he remarked. He said PM Shehbaz Sharif was controlling Punjab through the chief secretary and the IGP, an act which was against the provincial autonomy given in the 18th amendment.