NA Secretariat asks Shahid Khaqan to tender apology to speaker

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly (NA) Secretariat on Wednesday wrote a letter to the former prime minister and PML-N parliamentarian Shahid Khaqan, asking him to tender apology to the NA Speaker Asad Qaisar within seven days for his continuous misbehaviour and disregard of the Chair. While, PPP expressed its no-confidence on NA Speaker and said he was not acting as a custodian of the House but as a worker of the PTI.

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has been informed through the letter that he disregarded the Chair and the accepted parliamentary norms, especially on April 20, while a very important business was being transacted in the House. “Taking serious note of the continuous misbehaviour and disregard of Chair and accepted parliamentary norms, a letter on the direction of the Speaker National Assembly has been issued to MNA Shahid Khaqan Abbasi under Rule 21 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct Business of the National Assembly,” the National Assembly Secretariat said.

The letter further said that the NA Speaker is of the view that Mr. Abbasi had eroded and disregarded the authority of the Chair and by such act the smooth running of the proceedings of the assembly were obstructed. “It further said that his act had interrupted and obstructed the business of the National Assembly and ridiculed the Chair,” the letter said.

Shahid Khaqan has been asked to tender an apology and to explain his position within seven the days of receipt of this letter as to why action in terms of Rule 21 of the adults shall not be taken against him.

The letter further said that if reply was not received within such time, it will be presumed that he has no explanation to offer. It may be pointed out here that Shahid Khaqan, while standing in front of Speaker’s dais during Tuesday’s proceedings, had heated exchange of words with the Chair. “Do not you have any shame,” Abbasi, while addressing the Speaker when even after he was given the floor, said. He went to threaten the Speaker that he would hit him with a shoe. “Remain within your limits and go to your seat,” the Speaker in response said.

Later, while speaking from his seat, the PML-N senior parliamentarian also asked the Speaker that he should learn how to run proceedings of the House.

Meanwhile, The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) expressed its no-confidence on National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaisar and said he was not acting as a custodian of the House but as a worker of the PTI.

“Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaisar has lost the moral justification to remain on his post due to his partial and biased attitude,” said Secretary General PPP Syed Nayyar Hussain Bokhari in a statement on Wednesday.

Nayyar Hussain Bokhari said the role of NA Speaker and Senate chairman is above than the party affiliation but due to partial and biased attitude of NA Speaker the constitutional office lost its credibility.

He said due to biased attitude of Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaisar, every session of National Assembly faced unpleasant situation. He said the PPP from day first pointing out the biased and partial attitude of the NA Speaker. Bokhari said the government convene the session of the National Assembly in haste without taking the opposition into confidence on the sensitive matter.