- PTI says lawmakers who took oath committed ‘contempt of court’
- PML-N women and minority members take oath in Punjab Assembly
ISLAMABAD: Several newly elected lawmakers on reserved seats in the National Assembly have been sworn in.
They were administered oath by NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq amid slogans by PTI-backed lawmakers.
It must be noted that the Election Commission of Pakistan earlier this week rejected the allocation of reserved seats to members of the Sunni Ittehad Council — new home of PTI — and distributed those seats among other parties, mainly the PML-N and PPP.
PHC order applies to eight women reserved seats, clarifies AGP Awan
Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan has clarified that the Peshawar High Court’s order pertaining to the stay on oath-taking of MNAs on reserved seats applied to eight lawmakers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
As the National Assembly session convened today, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq administered oath to some MNAs on reserved seats — a move that was contested by the PTI.
However, the AGP stated that none of the MNAs sworn in today were from KP.
NA did not receive any notice on oath-taking of MNAs
National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has said that the house did not receive any notice or order from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) regarding the oath-taking of MNAs on reserved seats.
He passed these remarks after PTI-backed lawmaker Barrister Gohar Ali Khan highlighted that MNAs on reserved seats could not be administered oath in light of the order of the Peshawar High Court.
It must be noted that a day earlier the PHC had deferred the oath-taking of nine women lawmakers, who had been awarded the reserved seats claimed by the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC).
Oath-taking of MNAs ‘contempt of court’, says PTI’s Omer Ayub
PTI-backed MNA Omer Ayub Khan has said that the lawmakers who took oath today on reserved seats committed “contempt of court” and their swearing-in should be declared “void”.
Speaking on the floor of the lower house of the Parliament, he stated that PTI leaders were not being allowed to meet incarcerated party chief Imran Khan by the Adiala Jail superintendent.
“We should be told if the jail superintendent is answerable to the court or to the government,” Ayub demanded.
“Today, on behalf of all my opposition members, I demand that the oath taken today should be declared null and void as it has no legal standing,” he said, adding that the opposition would continue to protest until SIC members on reserved seats took oath.
PML-N’s women, minority members take oath
The PML-N women and minority members in the Punjab Assembly took oath as MPAs on Friday during the third session of the assembly.
As per details, members appointed to the reserved seats including 21 women and 3 minorities took their oaths following a decision of the election commission.
Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Ahmed Khan administered the oath to the incoming members. Among those who took oaths are Tariq Masih, Wasim Anjum, and Basrooji are slated to take their oaths on minority seats.
Among those set to take oath on women’s reserved seats are Sadia Muzaffar, Fiza Maimoona, Abida Bashir, Maqsoodan Bibi, Amira Khan, Somia Atta, Rahat Afza, Rukhsana Shafiq, Tahseen Fawad, Farzana Abbas, Shagufta Faisal, Uzma Butt, Maria Talal, Sajida Naveed, Nasreen Riaz, Afsheen Hasan, Amna Parveen, Shahr Bano, Zeba Ghafoor, Rubina Nazir and Syeda Sameera. During the session, the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) members chanted slogans and surrounded the speaker’s dice.
Despite numerous rulings from the speaker for maintaining order in the house, the situation did not defuse which prompted the speaker to adjourn the season for a while. Meanwhile, foolproof security arrangements were put in place to maintain order and safety during the assembly session.
