Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that a “major action” is being planned against horse-trading in Sindh House, as the PTI-led government make efforts to thwart Opposition’s no-trust motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The statement allegation was made by the information minister during a press conference in Islamabad.
“Sindh House, Islamabad, is currently the centre of horse-trading,” Fawad said while accusing the Opposition of buying votes of MNAs.
“The way markets are being set up is against the Constitution.”
He said that there were reports of huge sums of money being shifted to Sindh House, adding that PPP has deputed police outside it to accommodate people there.
When asked if the government plans to raid Sindh House, Fawad said he doesn’t know about a raid but there would be a strict action.
Responding to a question if the government was looking for “12 men”, the minister said:
“What [do you mean by] ‘looking for’, we know [these] 12 men.”
Following Fawad Chaudhry’s statement, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari warned the government not to provoke the Opposition, adding that they do not want “anarchy in Islamabad” due to the OIC conference.
“MNAs have been threatened with violence, arrest and dire consequences if they take part in no confidence process. Their lives, liberty and family are under threat. MNAs will take any and all means for their own protection against this fascist regime,” tweeted Bilawal.
The PPP chairman assured the lawmakers that his party and the PDM will do all that they can to protect them.
“We will not show all our cards now. A few friends will respond to Imran Khan’s accusations. More to come in the coming days. Out of respect of OIC conference we don’t want anarchy in Islamabad. government must not provoke us,” said Bilawal.
The PPP leadership has claimed that after the police raided Parliament Lodges last week, the government is planning to ambush Sindh House in Islamabad, saying that if anyone is hurt, Prime Minister Imran Khan’s regime will be responsible for it.
On Thursday, the Islamabad Police had conducted an operation inside Parliament Lodges and arrested two JUI MNAs and several workers. However, the police later released them as JUI-F announced a country-wide protest.
In a joint statement released by PPP MNAs, including Abdul Qadir Patel, Agha Rafi, Javed Shah Jillani and others, it was stated that after the Islamabad police’s “barbaric attack” on Parliament Lodges, the MNAs requested the Sindh government to accommodate them in Sindh House, citing security reasons.
“The lives of MNAs, including women members, are not safe as the PTI-led government is hell-bent on terrorism, therefore, we [MNAs] had requested the Sindh government to provide the Sindh police security, the statement said.
The PPP MNAs further stated that they had information that Imran Khan’s goons of ‘Tiger Force’ were planning to attack Sindh House.
“Therefore, if any PPP MNA or personal property is hurt, Imran Khan’s government will be responsible for this,” it said.
On the other hand, PPP’s senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar refuted PM’s statement about Sindh House and said the PM is used to levelling allegations against his rivals.
The PPP senator in this regard stated that no one is hidden there. “Only our lawmakers are in Sindh House at Islamabad,” he said.
“It’s not the first time the PM leveled allegations as he has a long history of doing such things, however, it’s our right to take steps for the security of our parliamentarians,” he said.
