Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNAs staged a dharna outside the official residence of National Assembly Speaker Pervez Ashraf on Monday as the lawmakers demanded to meet the caretaker or secretary of the House regarding the resignations.
After being barred from entering the Parliament House, the MLAs proceeded towards the Speaker’s residence.
PTI leader Malik Amir Dogar demanded that the Speaker wants to meet the National Assembly or the Secretary regarding the resignations of MNAs.
“About 45 MPs came to the Speaker’s office of the National Assembly. Today’s session of the Senate has been adjourned,” he added, adding that the legislators have gone to the Speaker’s residence to meet their staff. will go.
PTI MNA Lal Chand Malhi said that Khan has decided to withdraw the resignations.
Earlier today, more than 40 PTI legislators have decided to withdraw their resignations from the National Assembly on the instructions of party chief Imran Khan.
This was announced by PTI Secretary General Asad Umar on Twitter. He said that the remaining 44 MNAs of the party, whose resignations are yet to be accepted, have decided to withdraw their decision to quit the assembly.
کیونکہ سپیکر ابھی تک تمام اسمبلی ارکان کے استعفے قبول نہیں کر رہے، اس لئے پارٹی چیئرمین کی ہدایات کے مطابق 44 ارکان اسمبلی نے اپنے استعفے واپس لینے کا فیصلہ سپیکر قومی اسمبلی کو ای میل کر دیا ہے. اگلا قدم اپوزیشن لیڈر کی نامزدگی ہو گی. pic.twitter.com/qx86MCyTBK
— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) January 23, 2023
The PTI leader said that an email has been sent to the Speaker. He also mentioned the names of the MNAs who withdrew their resignations.
Meanwhile, PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry said that 45 legislators have decided to withdraw their resignations so that the party can take the posts of Leader of Opposition and Parliamentary Party Leader.
Chaudhry said the PTI decided to withdraw the resignations to get rid of a “fake” opposition leader and prevent “turncoats” from voting for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a vote of confidence.
تحریک انصاف کے 45 ممبران اسمبلی نے اسپیکر قومی اسمبلی سے لیڈر آف اپوزیشن اور پارلیمانی پارٹی کے عہدے تحریک انصاف کو دینے کیلئے استعفیٰ واپس لے کئے ہیں، اس کا مقصد جعلی اپوزیشن لیڈر سے جان چھڑانا اور اعتماد کے ووٹ میں لوٹوں کو شہباز شریف کو ووٹ دینے سے روکنا ہے
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) January 23, 2023
Chaudhry said the PTI decided to withdraw the resignations to get rid of a “fake” opposition leader and prevent “turncoats” from voting for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a vote of confidence. can
Interestingly, the number of legislators mentioned by Omar and Chaudhry differed from each other. The former MNAs gave the names of 44 MNAs while the latter said that 45 MLAs have withdrawn their resignations.
This development comes after National Assembly Speaker Pervez Ashraf accepted the resignation of 70 MNAs last week.
The Speaker first accepted 34 resignations on January 17 and then another 35 three days later.
The Election Commission of Pakistan immediately de-notified the MNAs after the Speaker submitted his resignation.
In July last year, National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf accepted the resignations of 11 PTI legislators.
PTI Chairman Imran Khan contested eight of these seats when by-elections were held in October and won seven of the constituencies that went to polls.
Resignations
PTI lawmakers resigned en masse after the Imran Khan-led government was toppled by a no-confidence motion in April last year.
PTI had claimed that after the resignation of Asad Qaiser, former Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri had accepted the resignations in the absence of the Speaker.
Speaker Ashraf had stopped the process of accepting the resignations by saying that the rest of the assembly members would be called individually for confirmation.
However, contrary to their claims, they accelerated the process when the PTI, earlier this month, announced its return to the assembly and tested the prime minister through a no-confidence motion.
