Members of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Monday staged a walkout from the National Assembly during the session, protesting what they termed violations of the Constitution and law through the promulgation of ordinances.
The walkout was announced after strong objections were raised by PPP leader Syed Naveed Qamar, who said that for the first time in Pakistan’s history an ordinance had been issued without the signature and approval of the President. He questioned how the government could issue an ordinance without the President’s signature, saying such a step had not been taken even during the dictator’s era. Declaring that the party could not be part of the House under these circumstances, he said the PPP would continue its protest until the government takes corrective measures.
Earlier, the National Assembly session began under the chairmanship of Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, 37 minutes later than the scheduled time. The panel of chairs for the current session included Ali Zahid, Abdul Qadir Patel, Shehla Raza and Nuzhat Sadiq. Fateha was offered for the mother of MNA Moazzam Ali, former minister Manzoor Wattoo and others, with the prayer led by MNA Engineer Ali Muhammad Khan.
During the proceedings, the Speaker read out the procedure for appointing the leader of the opposition following the disqualification of the opposition leadership, terming the matter sub judice. Malik Amir Dogar informed the House that he had submitted the required papers with the signatures of his members and said he was ready for verification in whatever manner the Speaker deemed appropriate. Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said the work would be completed after verification and urged members to keep politics aside.
As the protest continued, PPP members walked out of the House, followed by PTI members. PPP MNA Hussain Tariq pointed out the quorum, prompting the Speaker to order counting in the House. With the quorum found incomplete, the proceedings of the National Assembly were suspended for 15 minutes.
The session later resumed after a 35-minute break; however, PPP members did not return to the House, and the counting process continued.