LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) nominee, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi of the PML-Q on Thursday was sworn in as the Speaker for the Punjab Assembly.
Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi gained 201 votes while Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Chaudhry Iqbal Gujjar received 147 in the secret balloting process. A total of 349 votes were cast among which one was rejected.
Outgoing speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal administered oath to new speaker who will supervise the election of the deputy speaker for the assembly.
Pandemonium broke out as the second session of Punjab Assembly commenced. Two more MPAs-elect, Malik Muhammad Waheed and Muhammad Khan Leghari, were administered oath taking the total number of members to 355. However; four MPAs are still to be sworn in.
The speaker showed the balloting place to the members and switched off the CCTV cameras installed there. He also barred the MPAs from taking mobiles inside the booth.
Ruckus was created thrice during the session of the assembly. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) expressed grave concerns over the polling process. Khawaja Saad Rafique maintained that fool-proof arrangements have not been made.
The members of the assembly created a ruckus while chanting slogans against each other. As the speaker failed to maintain order in the House, he read out the election order in the persisting situation.
During the voting process, PTI’s Sadqa Sahab Dad Khan revealed her vote triggering protest from PML-N members in front of speaker’s dais. Her vote was ultimately cancelled by the speaker.
At least 358 newly-elected members of 17th Punjab Assembly were administered oath on Wednesday by outgoing speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal.
Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) stayed away from the election. Sources told Dunya News that PPP will neither vote for PTI candidate nor for PML-N’s. NNI
Despite only 10 seats in Punjab Assembly, Chaudhary Pervaiz Elahi becomes speaker.
The biggest party in the National Assembly Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf with its ally Pakistan Muslim league Q has nominated former Chief Minister of Punjab and the deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Pervaiz Ilahi in Punjab Assembly as their joint candidate for Speaker in Provincial Assembly of Punjab who has contested against the opposition parties’ candidate Chaudhary Iqbal Gujjar.
To elect Chaudhary Pervaiz Illahi speaker of Punjab Assembly, the most probable ruling party PTI and allied did not face any major obstacles. The ruling party in center PTI, gained 119 general seats in Punjab in general elections 2018. Later, 23 independent candidates joined them. After the reserve seats for women and for religious minorities, the ruling alliance has surpassed the magic number required to form the government.
The most probable next ruling PTI led alliance in Punjab now have 186 seats in Provincial Assembly which were more than enough to get Chaudhary Pervaiz Illahi of Pakistan Muslim League Q elected speaker. Despite this, the alliance managed to gain 15 more than the required and expected votes. PTI led alliance candidate Chaudhdary Pervaiz Ilahi gained 201 votes through secret balloting.
Earlier, this mind boggling number games mauvering already had helped PTI Chaudhary Ghulam Sarwar to acquire a seat in Senate despite having less number of seats in Punjab Assembly.
Though Pakistan Muslim League N is the major political party in the Punjab Assembly with 130 seats but due to the non-alliance of Pakistan People’s Party and other required number of independents, was not in the position to form the government. Likewise, the number of votes required to get PMLN’s nominated candidate Chaudhary Iqbal Gujjar to get elected speaker of the National Assembly were also not available with PML-N.
Chaudhary Iqbal Gujjar only once contested on the party ticket of Pakistan Muslim league Q and defeated otherwise he remains a member of Punjab Assembly. He previously has portfolios of Health, Education and Information. He was said to be close to Chaudhary Pervaiz Ilahi during the reign of Pervaiz Musharaf when Ilahi was the Chief Minister of Punjab but he has now been fielded against him.
According to the analysts, this can be the first severe blow to the former ruling party in Punjab, PMLN. In the coming days, this trend may dent the party internally more and more of the party memebers can betray the party. After Chaudhary Sarwar elected to the sebate,the latest trend of unexpected vote increase through secret balloting hints more wreak in coming election of Chief Minister.
Pakistan People’s Party has six general seats and one seats reserved for woman in Punjab Assembly. PPP has decided not to cast vote in any of the party’s or alliance favor.
Pakistan Muslim League Q along with its alliances has 10 seats in total in Punjab Assembly. After only 1995, it is the second time that the party with such a less number of seats has acquired such an important designation in the Punjab Assembly. In 1995, Mian Manzoor Watto from the platform of Pakistan Muslim League Junejo with the help of PPP got elected as the Chief Minister of Punjab. Junejo League had had only 18 seats then.
With the support of PPP to Junejo League, Mian Watto succeeded in acquiring chief minister ship of Punjab and with the non-support of PPP to PMLN, Chaudhary Pervaiz Illahi succeeded in acquiring speakership of Punjab Assembly in Pakistan.
Post-election political scenario is getting worse for Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) as 15 members of provincial assembly [MPAs] did not vote for party’s candidate Iqbal Gujjar for slot of Punjab Assembly’s speaker.
On the other hand, sources privy to PML-N told our corresponded that numbers of votes for Iqbal Gujjar had plummeted by 12. They added that 159 lawmakers of party had taken oath whereas 147 members casted their vote in favor of Iqbal Gujjar. Three MPAs-elect of PML-N has not yet taken oath.
Earlier, several members of the party had expressed displeasure as their lawmakers did not record protests during the oath-taking ceremony of the revamped National Assembly.
The members at a parliamentary meeting of the party presided over by former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Shairf voiced their concerns on the election campaign and said key leaders focused on their respective constituencies instead of working collectively.
On the other hand, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Khan Tareen on Sunday disclosed that party is in contacts with several MPAs-elect [member of provincial assembly] of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz.
Ever since Shehbaz Sharif took presidency of the PML-N, ruptures have been deepening in party’s ranks over one issue or another. Monitoring Desk adds: PTI’s Dost Muhammad Mazari elected Deputy Speaker Punjab Assembly. Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari is a Pakistani politician who had been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013.