After completing their 6-year tenure, 52 Senators of Pakistan on Tuesday retired from the membership of the upper house of the parliament. The retired senators belong to different political parties.
Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani, Deputy Chairman Mirza Afridi, Leader of the House Ishaq Dar, and Leader of the Opposition Dr. Shahzad Waseem are among the retired lawmakers. Due to the retirement of 52 senators including the chairman and deputy chairman, the upper house of the parliament will remain dysfunctional for three weeks.
Party-wise Numbers:
Out of the 52 retired lawmakers, 13 belong to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), 11 to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), 7 to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), two each from JUI-F, Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, and National Party. Additionally, four senators supported by the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), along with one senator from Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), MQM-P, and Pakistan Muslim League-F (PML-F), have also retired.
Notable retirees include Moula Bux Chandio, Farogh Naseem, Dr. Musadik Malik, Faisal Javed, and Azam Khan Swati. Senators Asad Ali Junejo and Mushahid Hussain Sayed representing Islamabad have also retired.
The schedule for Senate elections will be issued on March 14, and nomination papers can be obtained from the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) head office and four provincial secretariats. Nomination papers can be submitted to the concerned ECP offices on March 15 and 16.
After the general elections, six Senate seats became vacant as senators won MNA seats. By-elections to fill these vacant seats will take place on March 14. A senator’s term is six years, and half of them retire every three years. The elections of new Senators typically take place days before the expiry of the senators’ term, but this time that could not happen.
It should be noted that members of provincial assemblies (PMAs) elect the senators, while two senators from Islamabad are elected by the members of the National Assembly.
