ISLAMABAD, Jan 26 (APP): Boisterous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI)
members once again marred the National Assembly proceedings by chanting slogans and resorting to fracas least bothering to the requests of the Speaker to run the House smoothly as agreed between the parties.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq repeatedly requested PTI’s parliamentary leader
Shah Mahmood Qureshi to restrain his party members to honour the
commitment made to other parties when the issue was discussed at
a meeting.
“You have not honoured your commitment. You started all
this. The atmosphere was cordial before you started chanting
slogans,” the Speaker commented.
“On one hand you talk of respecting the House and on the other you
are adulterating the atmosphere. This is breach of trust
and commitment you had made,” he added.
He said Leader of the Opposition Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah had culminated his speech smoothly “but you and your party started
pandemonium.”
As reflected by the Speaker’s observation, it was apparent that it
was agreed at the meeting to allow the opposition parties to
speak on points of order on the Panama issue as the decision
on their privilege motion was yet to come.
But, the PTI members were neither ready to listen to the
Speaker nor to the treasury members reply as it seemed that they had pre-planned for what they had demonstrated.
“You have talked out your point and now you will have to
listen to the other side also. This is uncalled for that you
are disrupting and maligning the respect of the House,” the Speaker said.
The proceedings of the House reflected the usual tendency of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s street politics as they trampled down
democratic norms of listening to each other’s point of view
and bearing with fellow parliamentarians.
It is worth mentioning that the Pakistan Peoples
Party Parliamentaions members showed wisdom and respect for the
House and remained present at their seats, keeping aloof of
the agitating politics of PTI.
The treasury members expressed utmost restraint as they were waiting
for their turn to reply to the allegations of the opposition
parties. But, the opposition parties as usual kept chanting
slogans and passing objectionable remarks, also insisting the
Speaker only to allow time to the opposition members.
It was evident from the proceedings that the
treasury members listened to the opposition’s claims and
allegations just with an expectation to speak at their turn. But,
the moment did not come as it seemed apparently that the
opposition would move away after hurling their rhetoric.
So, the time came when the PTI members touched the limit of
patience of the treasury members and happening in the House culminated
in a brawl between them, who indulged in pushing each other in front
of the Speaker’s dice as there is always a limit of
patience against insulting remarks and slogans.
This sorry state of affairs forced the Speaker to
adjourn the proceedings of the House for 15 minutes and when
the House proceedings started again, the opposition parties walked
out of the House as usual without listening to the view point
of the government.