NA vote to de-seat PTI lawmakers postponed till Thursday

Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Tuesday referred till Thursday the matter of voting on the motions submitted by the Jamiat-i-Ulemae-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) to deseat the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf MNA's.

MQM and JUI-F had moved motions to vacate the seats of 28 PTI members of the National Assembly (MNAs) under clause 2 of article 64 of the constitution of Pakistan over the absence of the legislators without leave in the assembly sittings for forty consecutive days during the party's sit-in in Islamabad. JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman maintained that motions should be deferred for a few days to complete the consultation with fellow legislators, politicians and party members.

"If the government and the other political parties succeed to convince us for the withdrawal the motion then we can with- draw our motion to de-seat PTI MNA's," the JUI-F Chief said. He said that his party wants the supremacy of the constitution and continuation of political system in the country. MQM Leader Dr Farooq Sattar said that the strengthening of democracy is not possible without abiding by the constitution. "A request should come from PTI leadership for condoning their absence from the parliament for forty days," he said.

Leaders belonging to the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) persuaded the MQM and JUI-F to take back the resolutions. Earlier during the day, State Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Shaikh Aftab Ahmed had also requested the leadership of JUI-F and the MQM to withdraw their motions regarding de-seating of 28 members of the PTI.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNAs led by Shah Mahmood Qureshi, however, staged a walkout from the National Asseembly, maintaining that they do not want to ruin the atmosphere of the session by their presence. "We are elected and are not going to beg anyone for mercy on this matter," Qureshi told journalists outside the National Assembly.

The PTI leader maintained that no party has shown concern over our return to parliament and want us to play our role except for JUI and MQM but they will not sit in the lower house until the fellow parliamentarians decide their fate. The senior politician maintained that his party left no stone unturned to solve the 'rigging' issue through judicial means but the efforts met with disappointment, forcing the party to stage a sit-in. "Then the govt set up an inquiry commission, it ruled and we accepted its verdict", claimed Qureshi.

Qureshi added that the PTI's lawmakers only offered their resignations in protest against the unjust attitude of the government in this regard.