ISLAMABAD: In a major twist in opposition-led anti-government campaign under the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) banner, two MNAs of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Wednesday plainly refused to validate their resignations.

According to sources, appearing at the National Assembly Secretariat, MNAs Murtaza Javed Abbasi and Muhammad Sajjad Awan said their resignation letters were fake, and refused to validate them. “We’d sent our resignations to the PML-N leadership but don’t know how they ended up in the National Assembly,” the lawmakers said, before submitting a written statement to the office of the National Assembly speaker.

Some days ago, MNA Awan had caused some tensions within the party by refuting the NA Speaker Asad Qaiser’s statement about receiving his resignation. “I never sent my resignation to the NA speaker, so where did he [NA speaker] get it from,” he had asked. Explaining his statement, Awan had said his resignation letter was in his possession and was never sent to the NA speaker. “My seat in the National Assembly has been entrusted to me by my party,” he had said.

“When the PML-N asks for my resignation, only then I will submit it,” the lawmaker had clarified, adding that the opposition’s move would make a significant difference as the government would not be able to operate after receiving a large number of resignations from the assembly members.

At that time, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb had also denied submitting the resignations directly to Qaiser, who belongs to the ruling PTI, and said Abbasi and Awan had sent them to the party’s provincial president.

Two days prior to the controversy, the PML-N vice president, Maryam Nawaz, had spoken of the “mischief” under which the aforementioned lawmakers’ resignations had reached Qaiser after which both were summoned to verify their legitimacy. “The two are towering figures when it comes to loyalty,” she had said, naming Abbasi and Awan. They must “throw them in the speaker’s face” and demand that he accept them, she had added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020