PTI lawmakers show muscle in assembly over JUI-F leader’s ‘derogatory’ remarks against PTI women as hall echoes with ‘Go Nawaz Go’, ‘Ro Imran Ro’ and ‘Go Diesel Go’ slogans
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly walls Thursday trembled with “Go Nawaz Go!” and “Ro Imran Ro!” slogans as the members of treasury and opposition benches came at loggerheads.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s female assembly members rolled up their sleeves against opposition leader from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F)’s Lutfur Rehman’s remarks that “PTI daily stages a female dance show in its Islamabad sit-in” and the party was “making the daughters of the nation dance in front of his container”.
The assembly’s temperature rose to an unbearable point when Minister for Public Works Shah Farman and MPA Fazal Elahi of PTI approached the opposition benches and engaged in a physical scuffle with opposition members.
The assembly’s security staff, however, stopped them and tried to vacate the assembly hall of those involved in the incident, prompting Speaker Asad Qaiser to adjourn the session till November 10.
The entire house then reverberated with slurs as it became difficult for the security staff to control the enraged Farman and Elahi.
It all started when the assembly started discussing two adjournment motions on the prevailing political situation in the country and law and order in the province. Rehman brought up the topic after the break for evening prayers.
The JUI-F MPA questioned as to why PTI Chairman Imran Khan does not attend Parliament if he was so serious about democracy. Rehman alleged that the KP government vehicles were being used for PTI’s dharna in Islamabad.
However, it was his comment on Khan encouraging women to partake in dharna activities which triggered the unsightly ruckus.
The women who were members of PTI stood up on their benches in protest and demanded the opposition leader to retract his statement. However, Rehman refused saying, “PTI lawmakers should have the courage to listen to me just as the entire nation has been listening to them for the past two months.”
As the session went out of control, slogans of “Go Imran Go”, “Go Nawaz Go” and “Go Diesel Go”, among others, were clearly audible.
UNACCEPTABLE:
Public Works Minister Farman later told journalists outside the assembly that the opposition leader used derogatory remarks against PTI’s female workers who he said were protesting against the poll rigging.
Farman said that Lutfur Rehman spoke in the same tone in which JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman addresses public meetings.
“He should know the difference between assembly floor and public meeting,” Farman said, adding that the opposition leader’s remarks were allegedly against Islamic and Pukhtun culture.
Earlier during the assembly session, a unanimous resolution was passed by the house, demanding of the federal government for declaring the province as war-affected and announcement of a special relief package for improving its socio-economic condition.
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