Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the former interior minister of Pakistan, has said that he is not part of any political game.
While taking oath as a lawmaker in the Punjab Assembly, Nisar spoke to the media wherein he said: “As you all know, I had won the election on the provincial assembly seat in the 2018 general elections by a lead of 34,000”.
“I had decided to take oath after a political development took place. The government plans to introduce an ordinance that eyes disqualification of members; however, the qualification and disqualification of members are included in the Constitution of Pakistan,” he said.
“Imran Khan should tone down [his aggressiveness] towards the Opposition. The government should take into account all political viewpoints as this country needs increased understanding. This nation needs to unite, not divide,” he said.
Nisar also maintained that news about his meeting with Shehbaz Sharif is only based on speculations.
It should be noted that speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi is currently the acting governor in the absence of Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar. He is not attending the assembly session.
Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Mohammad Mazari is not attending either due to personal engagements, sources in the Punjab Assembly said.
Earlier, alarm bells rang for Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar as a veteran politician, and MPA-elect Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Sunday formally announced to take oath as Member of Punjab Assembly in today’s session.
The announcement comes after a series of back-to-back quiet meetings between Nisar and some key players in Rawalpindi and Lahore. Though Nisar had won election from PP-10, Rawalpindi in general elections held three years back in 2018, but he chose not to take oath and the seat remained vacant for three long years.
Nisar contested the 2018 general elections from two National Assembly and two provincial seats, losing all but the PP-10 (Rawalpindi-V) seat which he won with a good margin of over 30,000 votes.
“I have consulted my associates and the people of my constituency and will be taking oath in the Punjab Assembly tomorrow, on Monday,” a statement issued by his office said.
Nisar, a former Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz stalwart, parted ways with his party of more than 35 years in 2019 after developing differences with deposed prime minister and party’s leader Nawaz Sharif.
In his statement, Nisar said that his agreement to take the oath did not mean he had changed his mind but maintained that he would neither take his salary, nor avail the perks provided to legislators.
He further said that he had decided to take the oath almost three years after winning the seat so as to take control of the political situation in his constituency.
Boycotting the by-election and leaving the political turf unoccupied for rivals will be a major political mistake, he said.
He said that it would not be sensible to participate in the by-polls without becoming a member of the provincial assembly.
He further said that he was also mindful of the risk of the spread of Covid-19 during election campaigns and mass gatherings in case of him stepping down as a lawmaker and the subsequent scheduling of a by-poll.
Nisar’s decision has come amid the government’s plan to bring an ordinance for cancelling the membership of lawmakers who have not taken oath within the required period after winning the election.
His decision to not taking oath for three long years has also been challenged in the Lahore High Court.
A petition was filed in the court pleading to direct the Election Commission of Pakistan to de-notify Nisar for his failure to take oath, and also order the federal and Punjab governments to amend the relevant laws and introduce a time frame for lawmakers-elect to take their oath.
The petitioner said that Nisar’s decision to not take his oath was a violation of the law of people’s representation.
