Amid strong uproar coupled with a noisy walkout from opposition the City Council on Tuesday backed cancellation of membership of those council members who are also office bearers of any political party by passing a resolution.
Expectedly, City Naib Nazim Nasrin Jalil, however, turned down a request from the opposition benches to table an anti-emergency resolution in the House, which led to one of the most unprecedented pandemonium in the Council Hall.
The opposition members were on their feet when a treasury-backed resolution, directly aimed at opposition leader Saeed Ghani, who is the information secretary of Pakistan People's Party (PPP) in Karachi, drew attention of the Sindh Local Commission and Election Commission of Pakistan toward "violation" of the Sindh Local Government Ordinance (SLGO) 2001.
Abdul Jalil and Syed Khalil Ahmed, who had a newspaper in their hand carrying picture of the Saeed Ghani taken during a protest demonstration against imposition of emergency in the country, claimed that the PPP information secretary had violated the SLGO 2001.
On this, strong waves of criticism aroused from the opposition benches and they shouted anti-Musharraf and emergency slogans like "Go Musharraf Go" demanding freedom of judiciary and media, and restoration of the Constitution. The opposition soon walked out of the House as protest.
Asif Siddiqui, leader of the House, angrily criticised the opposition particularly Saeed Ghani and questioned why his party leader, Benazir Bhutto, was moving freely district to district if no freedom was there in the country?
Sarwat Arif, Shagufta Jahanzeb and other treasury members also lashed at Saeed Ghani who was what they claimed following a double standard. They reminded him of the government's restrictions of different institutions during two tenures of the PPP.
Responding to the treasury's explicit move against him, Saeed Ghani in his talks with media persons on sideline of the council said the resolution worth nothing to him.
"There is no such clause in the SLGO 2001 which could justify claim of the treasury. Only Article 152 (S) of SLGO has some mention which is related to the election campaign and says any candidate would not use flag or platform of the political parties".
"The SLGO prohibits party based candidature for the local body elections not the political based candidature", he said. He said it would be the matter of pride for him if his membership is cancelled for his political activism against the dictatorial regime of General Musharraf.
"If this is really the case, millions of rupees from the CDGK budget are spent for political campaign of the MQM (Muttahida Quami Movement) during elections, Altaf Hussain's (MQM's self-exiled leader) birthday and other programmes", he alleged.
He also accused the City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal of following orders from London. "The city Nazim has repeatedly been saying during different programmes that no decision in the city can be taken without permission of Altaf Hussain", he claimed.
The opposition-backed resolution, which could not reach the House for approval, strongly condemned the chief of army staff for declaring an "undeclared martial law" in the name of emergency in the country.
The document criticised the military ruler for suspending the constitution, issuing the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO), sacking and detaining the top judges, putting curbs on media, launching arresting and manhandling of the lawyers, political leaders and activists and journalists.
Terming the emergency a conspiracy against the country and democratic norms the resolution demanded restoration of 1973 Constitution, giving the judiciary the pre-emergency status, lifting ban on media freedom, release of the arrested journalists, lawyers and political activists, reconstitution of the election commission and issuing the polls schedule under an impartial interim government.
The resolution also paid rich tribute to those judges who had refused to take oath under PCO. In the absence of opposition the House was quick in unanimously passing five other resolutions.
One was on delaying implementation of an agreement signed between the City Government and National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) on Civil Registration Management System (CRMS) till December 31, 2007. Second resolution allowed constitution of an 18-member committee to deliberate upon the implementation of Nadra's CRMS. The committee will submit its report within 15 days before the council, the document said. Third resolution called for sending case of the constitution of district health cadre to the administrative district officer law, for legal advice under article 140-A of SLGO 2001.
The council also allowed district officer council to spend Rs 20,000 for running administrative and financial affairs of the Council Secretariat and increased the impressed account to Rs 20,000 from the previous Rs 10,000, by passing the fourth resolution. The fifth resolution granted permission to offices of director media and director archives and research in the Naib Nazim Secretariat to use Rs 10,000 each on monthly basis as Impressed Account for maintenance of their offices. The convenor adjourned the session till Wednesday, November 14, 2007.