KP Assembly meets today

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly will resume its session today and it is expected to be one of the longest sessions.
Speaker Asad Qaiser will chair the session in which important bills are expected to be tabled. The assembly has been in business since October 23, 2014. Except Qaumi Watan Party, the opposition parties had boycotted the budget session and stuck to their protest till the adjournment of the assembly session on June 25.
However, opposition leader and parliamentary leader of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, Maulana Lutfur Rehman told The News that the opposition parties would attend the session as their boycott was meant for the budget session only. There were reports that QWP’s senior parliamentarian Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli will preside over the session being member of the panel of chairpersons in the absence of Speaker Asad Qaiser, who was supposed to officiate as the acting governor due to the departure of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor abroad. However, she termed it a rumour and pointed out that she was neither member of that panel nor would Speaker Asad Qaiser perform as acting governor because Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan’s foreign visit was delayed for certain reasons.
The assembly session was due to begin on July 28 but the speaker had rescheduled it till August 17 keeping in view the overseas visit of the governor and his chance of becoming acting governor in absence of Governor Sardar Mehtab.
The current session of the assembly is being allegedly prolonged for avoiding election for the deputy speaker’s office, which has been vacant after Imtiaz Shahid resigned as deputy speaker and took oath as minister for law and parliamentary affairs in October 2014.
On the first day of the current session on October 23, 2014, the opposition parties had demanded the chair to announce schedule for the election of deputy speaker.
In his ruling, the speaker had committed that he would announce the holding of the election at the end of the assembly session.
The combined opposition had agreed on the name of PPP MPA Syed Mohammad Ali Shah Bacha from Malakand district as joint candidate for the deputy speaker. However, due to the rift in the ruling PTI and distrust over some of MPAs, the ruling alliance is reportedly reluctant to hold election for the vacant post of deputy speaker.
It is said the deputy speaker office would be given to QWP if the party rejoins the PTI-led coalition government and in that case Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli is likely to get the position.
When contacted, Anisa ZebTahirkheli told The News that understanding between the the PTI and QWP parties regarding power-sharing formula had yet to be reached. However, she said the QWP would suggest names for the cabinet in case of its rejoining the provincial government.