KARACHI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Firdous Shamim Naqvi has resigned from his provincial assembly seat today (Tuesday).
Speaking to media outside the assembly, Naqvi said their leader was barred from speaking in the House yesterday, while a few other legislators were denied entry to the assembly today.
“I announce to resign from my seat (PS-101, Karachi East-III) due to behaviour of the Sindh government and I have submitted my resignation,” he said, adding that he could take to the streets to lodge his protest.
Earlier in the day, at least eight opposition lawmakers were barred from entering the Sindh Assembly premises in view of their “disorderly conduct damaging the sanctity of the House” during yesterday’s session.
The move prompted the party leaders to stage a sit-in outside the assembly gate today (Tuesday). A group of PTI lawmakers arrived at the assembly, accompanied by supporters holding drums, while a few others banned from the session wore garlands, but they were stopped by the security staff.
Opposition leader Haleem Adil Sheikh also joined them and attempted to pressure the staff to allow them entry, but in vain. Amid resistance from the guards, PTI’s Shabbir Qureshi, Muhammad Riaz Haider and Abdul Rasheed of the MMA scaled the gate and managed to enter the assembly.
Meanwhile, two female legislators of the PTI — Sidra Imran and Rabia Azfar Nizami — made it to the assembly from another gate after security staff cordoned the main gate due to commotion caused by the opposition.
The entry of eight lawmakers namely, PTI parliamentary leader Bilal Ahmed, Saeed Ahmed, Arsalan Taj, Muhammad Ali Aziz, Adeel Ahmed, Shah Nawaz Jadoon, Raja Azhar, and Rabistan Khan has been banned from the current session.
According to a notification, the speaker said the lawmakers showed “grossly disorder and expressed displeasure over it.” He added that such “disorderly conduct” has “damaged the sanctity of the House and also Parliamentary practices.”
Condemning an unpleasant incident that had taken place in the Sindh Assembly, the Speaker ordered a probe into the scuffle between the members from the opposition and treasury benches. Durrani has ordered Secretary Sindh Assembly, Umar Farooq, to submit a report after completing an inquiry into the incident.
