The National Assembly session to decide the fate of Prime Minister Imran Khan is set to resume shortly. The session was adjourned till 12:30pm but was seemingly delayed as opposition and government members held meetings.

NA Speaker Asad Qaiser is chairing today's session which began at 10:30am sharp, in accordance with the Supreme Court's directives, and with the recitation of the Holy Quran. It was followed by the national anthem and prayers for the recently deceased mother of MNA Shazia Sobia.

Voting on the no-confidence motion against the prime minister is the fourth item on the day's agenda. While the opposition came out in full force, very few members of the treasury benches were in attendance before the session was adjourned. Prime Minister Imran Khan was also not present.

A meeting was held between the treasury and opposition benches in the speaker's chamber after the session was adjourned, where the latter called for holding proceedings according to the Supreme Court's directives.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and PTI leader Amir Dogar participated from the government's side while Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Rana Sanaullah, Ayaz Sadiq, Naveed Qamar and Maulana Asad Mahmood represented the opposition.

Following this, a meeting of the opposition's parliamentary group was called at the opposition leader's chamber.

Shehbaz calls on Qaiser to follow SC's orders
Taking the floor shortly after the session began, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif hailed Thursday as a historic day in the country's history when the apex court rejected the deputy speaker's ruling. According to the PML-N leader, the SC decision had made Pakistan's future "bright".

He called on Qaiser to conduct proceedings in accordance with the SC's directives, stating that parliament would be writing history today. "Today, parliament is going to defeat a s elected prime minister in a constitutional manner," he declared.

Shehbaz told the speaker to let bygones be bygones and to stand for the law and the Constitution. He urged the speaker to play his role and to have his name "written in history in golden words".

"You must cash in on this moment with conviction and with your heart and your mind. Don't go off of the dictation of a s elected prime minister," he urged Qaiser, adding that the apex court's directives were clear.

Responding to Shehbaz's earnest plea, Qaiser assured the opposition leader that he would conduct proceedings according to the law and the Constitution.

"[But] the important thing is that there has been talk of an international conspiracy. This should also be discussed," he said, as the hall echoed with protests from the opposition benches.

This prompted Shehbaz to tell the Qaiser that he would be violating the court's directives if he would go down that road. He also read out the court's directives regarding the convening of the session.

"Under the court's directives, you are bound to take up this agenda item and no other item. That is the intent of the order and you cannot deviate from it," he said, calling on the speaker to hold voting on the motion forthwith.

"The SC's orders will be followed in true letter and spirit," Qaiser replied, giving the floor to Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

Source: Dawn 

BDST: 1432 HRS, APR 09, 2022
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