Opposition lawmakers besieged the National Assembly Speaker's podium, insisting for debate before voting on rescinding the House's earlier decision on a bill. The Deputy Speaker Sardar Mohammad Yaqub, who was in the chair at that moment, prematurely adjourned the proceedings and did not comply with the opposition's demand.
"What ever has been done, is done. No debate now," the chair defiantly remarked before the unexpected adjournment much to the astonishment of members and those sitting in the galleries.
The angry opposition lawmakers will repeat the same mode of protest when the assembly resumes business on Tuesday morning.
Before PPPP's protest, the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal and Pakistan Muslim League (N) members staged a token walkout against the chair for not allowing a debate on the increases in prices of petroleum products. They had already filed a number of motions in this connection.
The treasury had suffered crushing defeat on a motion to condone the delay in the standing committee's report on the National Development Finance Corporation (Repeal Bill, 2005 on the opening day of the this session.
On their feet, several members from Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians, chanted 'No', 'No' when the chair ignored their call for a debate on the move to rescind the assembly's earlier decision and sought for a vote.
Naheed Khan led the lawmakers' march towards the podium and tried to convince Sardar Yaqub to allow a debate prior to seeking a vote on the matter.
Talking to newsmen, later, PPPP members Naveed Qamar and Aitzaz Ahsan alleged the Parliament was being bypassed and the rules being flouted.
"The Parliament is deliberately being made irrelevant to impose presidential form of rule," they charged, referring to the government bid to lay five ordinances in the House.
They said that without bringing to the opposition's notice and without holding a debate, the treasury wanted to rescind the House decision.
Naveed Qamar said that parliamentary affairs minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi exerted pressure on the chair not to allow debate neither on the laying of five ordinances in one go and the bid to rescind the assembly's earlier decision.
Earlier, in the House, he wanted to know "why the elected representatives' voice on any piece of legislation was being choked and why instead of proper legislation, the rulers were focussing on ordinances?"
Quoting the Constitution's Article-89, he said the President could promulgate ordinances in emergency, but instead of holding sitting on routine, the House meets for two days and then is rested for the remaining period.
On this, the chair and the minister argued that they (opposition) could bring a resolution on the matter if had objection thereon.
As the House witnessed loud arguments, the MMA and PML (N) lawmakers walked out of the House and returned when a dozen of PPPP members besieged the speaker's podium.
Meanwhile, PPPP lawmaker Naheed Khan drew the House attention on a news item about "the chief of army staff chairing a meeting of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League the other day, where Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz was also present."
She continued that the report said that he asked the angry ministers and lawmakers to set aside concerns and be present in the House.
"If the generals will politicise the State institutions like this. It will not augur well. Already because of a general, the country had disintegrated. The other brought heroin and Kalashnikov culture," she alleged.
The chair quickly switched-off her mike, though she kept on speaking but that was inaudible.
Agitated by this move, she led other members to the podium and later, some MMA and PML (N) members joined in the protest.
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