ISLAMABAD/LAHORE - The federal government led by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Imran-led Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) have again entered into a political disagreement over the legitimacy of the election of Punjab chief minister and later removal of Punjab governor by the federal government.
Politics is all about disagreement but in Pakistan it always denoted bitterness, personal grudges, political point scoring, and self-interest. The recent developments in the political arena of the country suggest that the bitterness that started in the wake of the opposition parties submitting a no-confidence motion against PM Imran Khan are not going to subside. Once limited to verbal attacks, the politicians now seem ready to assault each other. What the Punjab Assembly witnessed on Saturday was an extension of what the National Assembly experienced for days ago and the situation is not heading towards any good.
The political tussle between the PTI and the political parties is on the rise. With each political development, every party seems to be trying to exploit the situation in its favour.
Punjab Assembly on Saturday had elected Hamza Shehbaz as new chief minister after a pandemonium of 6 hours amid reservations by the opponents, also leaving unpleasant memories. Governor Punjab, belonging to PTI who is supposed to administer oath to the CM, denied the same on the plea that he didn’t deem the election in accordance with the law.
On the other side, the federal government on Sunday removed Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema, who was appointed to the post by the PTI government earlier this month. The development was confirmed by PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb.
However, former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said that the governor Punjab would continue in his office as only the President is authorised to de-notify him, creating a constitutional deadlock. “President Arif Alvi has denied having removed Governor Punjab. Authority to remove the governor lies with the President. He (President) has not received any summary so far [for removal of the governor],” Fawad Chaudhry said in a tweet. He further said that Umar Cheema would continue to be in the office.
| Fawad insists power to remove governor belongs to President as Marriyum claims PM removed Cheema
Parvez Elahi announces legal fight against Hamza
In another tweet, Fawad said that Shehbaz Sahrif and Hamza Shehbaz both are on bail in a money laundering case worth 40 billion rupees. The day they [Sharifs] were supposed to be indicted, the court adjourned the proceedings, “allowing the accused to become prime minister”.
The oath of Chief Minister-elect, Hamza Shehbaz Sharif is in the doldrums as Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema refused to administer the oath terming his election by the Punjab Assembly as unconstitutional.
Reportedly in case of refusal by the governor, Hamza Shehbaz might take oath from the LHC chief justice. Hamza Shehbaz was elected as new chief minister of Punjab on Saturday amid rumpus in the House and boycott of the election by the ruling alliance of the PTI and the PML-Q.
Also, the president has not yet appointed a new governor based on the summary sent by the prime minister. The incumbent governor will continue to hold office unless he is de-notified by the president.
Addressing a press conference here, Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema declared the election of chief minister-elect Hamza Shehbaz unconstitutional and refused to take oath from him. “The swearing in ceremony to be held at Governor House has been canceled,” he announced.
The governor maintained that he had gone through the report sent to him by the Secretary Assembly regarding Saturday’s Assembly sitting. After reading this report, he said, he had come to the conclusion that the CM’s election was unconstitutional.
“I cannot do any unconstitutional act [by administering oath to Hamza Shehbaz]”, he said.
Cheema said that the nation had seen what happened in the Punjab Assembly during the election of the chief minister. “MPAs were harassed by violence and bullying. State power was used on election day. If Hamza Shehbaz really had enough numbers, then what was the need to expel the opponents?”, he remarked. The governor said that deputy speaker did not conduct the election in a transparent manner.
To a question, he said that the prime minister did not have the power to remove the governor. “I will continue to fulfill my constitutional responsibility until the President de-notifies me as governor”, he maintained.
Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi Sunday announced to challenge the election of Hamza Shehbaz Sharif as the new chief minister saying that the same has also been declared unconstitutional by the Punjab governor.
“A plan of action will be worked out to challenge this unconstitutional election. I have called a meeting of constitutional experts and seek their opinion on the matter. The CM’s election will be challenged in the court following their legal advice”, he said while addressing a joint parliamentary meeting of the PTI and the PTI on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering, Ch Parvez Elahi said that a bogus, unconstitutional and controversial election was held yesterday. “Governor Punjab and Advocate General Punjab have already declared yesterday’s election as controversial. This is a constitutional issue and until a clear situation emerges, we can’t recognize it”, he observed.
He said what had happened Saturday on the floor of the Punjab Assembly had never happened before in the parliamentary history of Punjab.
Parvez Elahi said that the police entered the Assembly as if they had come to attack and apprehend the dacoits. “All this happened under the leadership of Hamza Shehbaz. His target was to scare PTI and our MPAs out of the house”, he added.
He alleged that the deputy speaker held the election by standing in the gallery which had no constitutional status. “Anyone can hold the election by holding a megaphone in the gallery of the guests. Sitting in the place of strangers, a stranger conducted the election. What kind of election is this in which the chief ministerial candidate was injured and the election was held in his absence?”, he asked.
He said the gallery in which their members were supposed to go was blocked by the police. “Just as they conducted a fake election, they can also find a fake governor and take a fake oath”, he observed.
He said the application he filed on Saturday had not been registered yet, whereas the case was registered immediately last night at their request.
“I would like to thank all the members of the assembly who stood firm in the House against these goons. I also commend the courage of the female MPAs who stood their ground till the end of time”, he said.
The caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar, Members of National Assembly Moonis Elahi and Hussain Elahi including Shafqat Mahmood, Muhammad Basharat Raja, Hafiz Ammar Yasir, Chaudhry Zaheeruddin, Mian Shafi Muhammad, Mian Mahmood-ur-Rasheed, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Pir Syed Saeed Al Hassan Shah, Wasim Khan Badozai, Khayal Kastro, Nadeem Qureshi, Pir Ashraf Rasool, Amber Mahmood Khan, Samavia Tahir, Sabrina Javed, Farah Agha, Shahida Sajid, Sabin, Ayesha Iqbal, Zeba Umar, Sadia Sohail, Asiya Amjad, Samira Bukhari, Momina Waheed, Asiya Ahmed, Farhat Farooq and Khadija Omar participated.
Separately, Punjab Governor Punjab Omar Sarfraz Cheema, former Federal Minister Brigadier (retd) Ejaz Shah and Advocate General Punjab Ahmed Owais called on Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Parvez Elahi at his residence here and inquired about his well-being.
The governor said that the commotion in the Punjab Assembly yesterday was very unfortunate. “Political opponents of Ch Parvez Elahi also say that he always ran the house on the level of elegance and equality. I am deeply sorry for what PML-N did”, he said.
Omar Sarfraz said he was a political worker and had a constitutional position.
Meanwhile, a high level delegation of Jamaat-e-Islami also visited Ch Parvez Elahi. The delegation included Dr. Liaqat Baloch, Dr. Fareed Paracha while Muhammad Basharat Raja, Amir Sultan Cheema and other leaders were also present on the occasion. Jamaat-e-Islami leaders said that Ch Parvez Elahi is a well-rounded and senior political leader and we strongly condemned the violence against him.
Politics is all about disagreement but in Pakistan it always denoted bitterness, personal grudges, political point scoring, and self-interest. The recent developments in the political arena of the country suggest that the bitterness that started in the wake of the opposition parties submitting a no-confidence motion against PM Imran Khan are not going to subside. Once limited to verbal attacks, the politicians now seem ready to assault each other. What the Punjab Assembly witnessed on Saturday was an extension of what the National Assembly experienced for days ago and the situation is not heading towards any good.
The political tussle between the PTI and the political parties is on the rise. With each political development, every party seems to be trying to exploit the situation in its favour.
Punjab Assembly on Saturday had elected Hamza Shehbaz as new chief minister after a pandemonium of 6 hours amid reservations by the opponents, also leaving unpleasant memories. Governor Punjab, belonging to PTI who is supposed to administer oath to the CM, denied the same on the plea that he didn’t deem the election in accordance with the law.
On the other side, the federal government on Sunday removed Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema, who was appointed to the post by the PTI government earlier this month. The development was confirmed by PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb.
However, former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said that the governor Punjab would continue in his office as only the President is authorised to de-notify him, creating a constitutional deadlock. “President Arif Alvi has denied having removed Governor Punjab. Authority to remove the governor lies with the President. He (President) has not received any summary so far [for removal of the governor],” Fawad Chaudhry said in a tweet. He further said that Umar Cheema would continue to be in the office.
| Fawad insists power to remove governor belongs to President as Marriyum claims PM removed Cheema
Parvez Elahi announces legal fight against Hamza
In another tweet, Fawad said that Shehbaz Sahrif and Hamza Shehbaz both are on bail in a money laundering case worth 40 billion rupees. The day they [Sharifs] were supposed to be indicted, the court adjourned the proceedings, “allowing the accused to become prime minister”.
The oath of Chief Minister-elect, Hamza Shehbaz Sharif is in the doldrums as Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema refused to administer the oath terming his election by the Punjab Assembly as unconstitutional.
Reportedly in case of refusal by the governor, Hamza Shehbaz might take oath from the LHC chief justice. Hamza Shehbaz was elected as new chief minister of Punjab on Saturday amid rumpus in the House and boycott of the election by the ruling alliance of the PTI and the PML-Q.
Also, the president has not yet appointed a new governor based on the summary sent by the prime minister. The incumbent governor will continue to hold office unless he is de-notified by the president.
Addressing a press conference here, Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema declared the election of chief minister-elect Hamza Shehbaz unconstitutional and refused to take oath from him. “The swearing in ceremony to be held at Governor House has been canceled,” he announced.
The governor maintained that he had gone through the report sent to him by the Secretary Assembly regarding Saturday’s Assembly sitting. After reading this report, he said, he had come to the conclusion that the CM’s election was unconstitutional.
“I cannot do any unconstitutional act [by administering oath to Hamza Shehbaz]”, he said.
Cheema said that the nation had seen what happened in the Punjab Assembly during the election of the chief minister. “MPAs were harassed by violence and bullying. State power was used on election day. If Hamza Shehbaz really had enough numbers, then what was the need to expel the opponents?”, he remarked. The governor said that deputy speaker did not conduct the election in a transparent manner.
To a question, he said that the prime minister did not have the power to remove the governor. “I will continue to fulfill my constitutional responsibility until the President de-notifies me as governor”, he maintained.
Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi Sunday announced to challenge the election of Hamza Shehbaz Sharif as the new chief minister saying that the same has also been declared unconstitutional by the Punjab governor.
“A plan of action will be worked out to challenge this unconstitutional election. I have called a meeting of constitutional experts and seek their opinion on the matter. The CM’s election will be challenged in the court following their legal advice”, he said while addressing a joint parliamentary meeting of the PTI and the PTI on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering, Ch Parvez Elahi said that a bogus, unconstitutional and controversial election was held yesterday. “Governor Punjab and Advocate General Punjab have already declared yesterday’s election as controversial. This is a constitutional issue and until a clear situation emerges, we can’t recognize it”, he observed.
He said what had happened Saturday on the floor of the Punjab Assembly had never happened before in the parliamentary history of Punjab.
Parvez Elahi said that the police entered the Assembly as if they had come to attack and apprehend the dacoits. “All this happened under the leadership of Hamza Shehbaz. His target was to scare PTI and our MPAs out of the house”, he added.
He alleged that the deputy speaker held the election by standing in the gallery which had no constitutional status. “Anyone can hold the election by holding a megaphone in the gallery of the guests. Sitting in the place of strangers, a stranger conducted the election. What kind of election is this in which the chief ministerial candidate was injured and the election was held in his absence?”, he asked.
He said the gallery in which their members were supposed to go was blocked by the police. “Just as they conducted a fake election, they can also find a fake governor and take a fake oath”, he observed.
He said the application he filed on Saturday had not been registered yet, whereas the case was registered immediately last night at their request.
“I would like to thank all the members of the assembly who stood firm in the House against these goons. I also commend the courage of the female MPAs who stood their ground till the end of time”, he said.
The caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar, Members of National Assembly Moonis Elahi and Hussain Elahi including Shafqat Mahmood, Muhammad Basharat Raja, Hafiz Ammar Yasir, Chaudhry Zaheeruddin, Mian Shafi Muhammad, Mian Mahmood-ur-Rasheed, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Pir Syed Saeed Al Hassan Shah, Wasim Khan Badozai, Khayal Kastro, Nadeem Qureshi, Pir Ashraf Rasool, Amber Mahmood Khan, Samavia Tahir, Sabrina Javed, Farah Agha, Shahida Sajid, Sabin, Ayesha Iqbal, Zeba Umar, Sadia Sohail, Asiya Amjad, Samira Bukhari, Momina Waheed, Asiya Ahmed, Farhat Farooq and Khadija Omar participated.
Separately, Punjab Governor Punjab Omar Sarfraz Cheema, former Federal Minister Brigadier (retd) Ejaz Shah and Advocate General Punjab Ahmed Owais called on Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Parvez Elahi at his residence here and inquired about his well-being.
The governor said that the commotion in the Punjab Assembly yesterday was very unfortunate. “Political opponents of Ch Parvez Elahi also say that he always ran the house on the level of elegance and equality. I am deeply sorry for what PML-N did”, he said.
Omar Sarfraz said he was a political worker and had a constitutional position.
Meanwhile, a high level delegation of Jamaat-e-Islami also visited Ch Parvez Elahi. The delegation included Dr. Liaqat Baloch, Dr. Fareed Paracha while Muhammad Basharat Raja, Amir Sultan Cheema and other leaders were also present on the occasion. Jamaat-e-Islami leaders said that Ch Parvez Elahi is a well-rounded and senior political leader and we strongly condemned the violence against him.
