LAHORE: Holding Speaker Punjab Assembly Pervez Elahi and PTI responsible for creating constitutional crisis in the province of Punjab, Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari said on Tuesday that some people are bent upon to derail the system and thwart democracy.

He said in a statement that Parvez Elahi had asked him to go on leave. “Am I his personal servant that I should obey every word of him,” he said adding: “I neither joined the party of Parvez Elahi nor the group of Usman Buzdar; I will tell everyone when I join any party.”

Dost Mazari said that he was blamed for deviating from the party line because he abided by the law for which he had taken oath as deputy speaker. “Imran Khan questions the opening of courts at night. He himself should think why they were opened,” he remarked.

He further said that no one should consider him weak as he was also the chief of his tribe, and he would not take dictation from anyone. “My elders taught me respect, dignity and love. No one should consider it a weakness,” Mazari warned.

He said, “The Mazari people are my family. They are asking me to name the person who committed the torture in Punjab Assembly; even today, I proudly say whatever I did, I did it with elegance and honesty, and I still stand on it.”

Mazari said “I was ordered by the court, and therefore, I conducted proceeding of the assembly under the law. As per law, if there is no speaker, the deputy speaker or the panel of chairmen carries out the assembly proceedings.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022