Home »Top Stories » Pandemonium reigns in Parliament: PML-N, MQM MNAs almost come to blows

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  • Oct 14th, 2011
  • Comments Off on Pandemonium reigns in Parliament: PML-N, MQM MNAs almost come to blows
Members of PML-N and MQM on Thursday almost came to blows in the National Assembly over the statement of Dr Zulfiqar Mirza against the urban Sindh-based party and its leadership and the controversy surrounding Ayesha Ahad Mailk's marriage with Hamza Shahbaz Sharif. The PML-N pointed out that Dr Zulfiqar Mirza had made his allegations against MQM with of copy of the Holy Quran on his head.

They demanded of the government to discuss the issue in the Lower House of the Parliament. The PML-N also demanded of the government to invite Dr Zulfiqar Mirza to the Parliament to present his evidence instead of going to London. Coalition partner of PPP government, Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) also supported the PML-N demand. They urged the Speaker to form a Parliamentary Committee to look into the statements of Dr Mirza. A situation that strongly indicated the possibility of a physical fight between the members of both the parties was observed when Opposition Leader Chaudhry Nisar severely criticised the MQM during his address.

He said that the MQM members had used unparliamentary language about Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza's husband Dr Zulfiqar Mirza when she was chairing the House on Monday. "The MQM members did not even regard the Speaker as a woman and put her on the defensive by using unparliamentary words against her husband," he said.

During the address of the Opposition leader, the house presented some unsavoury scenes. Abid Sher Ali, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry and some other members from the PML-N and Sajid Ahmed, Muhammad Iqbal Khan from the MQM made aggressive moves towards each other but some senior members of PML-N, Federal Ministers Syed Khurshid Shah and Rehman Malik intervened to help cool down the situation. Abid Sher Ali also threw a bundle of audit books towards a member of MQM. Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that the statement of Dr Zulfiqar Mirza was very serious and purely related to the security of Pakistan and it should be discussed in the House.

"We will expose a party inside and outside Parliament which has a militant wing and 'no-go' areas and carries out bargaining with all the incumbent governments," he claimed. Chaudhry Nisar also requested Deputy Speaker Faisal Karim Kundi, who was chairing the House, to allot seats to all treasury members at right hand side and opposition members at left hand side of the House and similarly fix lobby areas within two to three days.

He said that the government did not take any step about All-Parties Conference (APC) to constitute a committee for the implementation of its recommendations and to present the resolution adopted by the APC in the Parliament. While rejecting an allegation, he said that PML-N has not made any attempt to move a vote of no-confidence against the Prime Minister.

Without naming MQM, he said that all parties except one had raised the issue of Dr Aafia and supported her. Now that party was attacking personal life of a family belonging to PML-N, he added. Asif Husnain of MQM said that the political parties should avoid confrontation as it could derail democratic system. He said that every government goes to Nine Zero when it feels need of MQM.

He said, "When PML-N could not get any result from the protest before the Parliament it has decided to create an ugly environment in the House. Such environment is being created in response to the signals of some forces. There is a conspiracy behind it and the government should investigate it," he said.

He said that Dr Zulfiqar Mirza had himself confessed that he was behind the murder of Rehman Dacoit. Hence, the need for an action against him, he added. The Deputy Speaker expunged unparliamentary remarks used by the MQM members about Dr Mirza. Raza Hayat Hiraj of PML-Q urged the Speaker to constitute a committee to investigate the statement of Dr Zulfiqar Mirza. Earlier, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani spoke on the floor of the National Assembly and said that for the first time all members had been provided development fund. Parliamentary secretaries told the National Assembly that roads linking Gwadar to the rest of the country would be ready by 2014.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2011


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