Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser on Wednesday barred seven lawmakers, including three from the ruling party, from entering the House, a day after parliamentarians from treasury and opposition benches hurled abuses and threw budget copies at each other.
Speaker Qaiser said that members who disrupted the session during Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif’s speech have been barred from entering the House as their behaviour was “unparliamentary” and “inappropriate”.
“They violated the rules and, despite the repeated direction of the chair, interrupted House proceedings,” he said.
Three lawmakers belonging to the PTI and the PML-N each and one member of Pakistan Peoples Party have been barred from attending the session. They include Ali Gohar Khan (PML-N), Chaudhary Hamid Hameed (PML-N), Sheikh Rohale Asghar (PML-N), Faheem Khan (PTI), Abdul Majeed Khan (PTI), Ali Nawaz Awan (PTI) and Syed Agha Rafiullah (PPP).
The Speaker said that the conduct of these “was grossly disorderly.”
He further said that they “have been told to not enter the precinct of the Parliament House till further orders.”
One of the barred members, Awan, is also Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Capital Development Authority Affairs. He was heard using highly abusive language against a PML-N lawmaker.
The ugly scenes were witnessed in the House when PML-N president Sharif attempted to make the customary speech to open the forum for debate on the budget. Within no time, the House turned into a battlefield.
The atmosphere was so tense that Speaker Qaiser had to suspend the proceedings of the House thrice.
PTI leader and Parliamentary Secretary for Law, Maleeka Bokhari, was hit on the face by some unknown object, injuring her eye and she was given treatment at the Parliament House dispensary.
Qaiser met Prime Minister Imran Khan before taking the decision to ban the erring members. He also held telephonic calls with Sharif and PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on the situation in the House.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly on the second consecutive day on Wednesday witnessed rumpus, forcing Speaker Qaiser to adjourn the session.
The treasury members started protests as soon as the speaker gave the floor to Sharif who started his speech surrounded by sergeants.
Qaiser repeatedly urged the lawmakers to sit down and keep silent to let the Leader of the Opposition complete his speech but his warnings fell on deaf ears and eventually he cut short the proceedings after an object was thrown at the speaker’s dais.
Flustered at the incident, he postponed the session till Thursday.
“I will not conduct this House until both the government and the opposition agree to ensure peace,” he said.
Minister for Planning Asad Umar blamed the Opposition for starting the trouble and said a treasury lawmaker, Akram Cheema, was injured by a bottle thrown at him.
Sharif during his brief speech said that the speaker was apparently helpless to rein in the members from his party. “I am saddened by your helplessness,” he said.
He also alleged that the treasury members were protesting on the behest of Prime Minister Khan.
