LAHORE: A day after removing Dost Mohammad Mazari through a no-trust motion, PTI’s Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi was elected unopposed as Punjab Assembly’s deputy speaker on Saturday, while PML-N moved the court against Friday’s speaker election.

Mr Abbasi — who had the support of both PTI and PML-Q — faced no challenge from the opposition as no candidate from the other side of the isle filed nomination papers for Saturday’s contest.

Mr Mazari, a defected PTI MPA, was voted out late Friday night after the ruling coalition managed to secure 186 votes required to make the motion successful.

However, it was a challenging situation for the PTI-PML-Q alliance as a vote of no confidence required an absolute majority — more than half of the total strength of the house — despite vacant seats. In the case of the 371-member assembly, the required number was 186, which was just what the coalition had.

PML-N moves LHC against speaker’s ‘illegal’ election; claims secrecy of ballot was violated

His ouster came after PTI leader Sibtain Khan comfortably won the contest for the Punjab Assembly speaker’s office. He secured 185 votes to defeat the opposition PML-Ns’ Saiful Malook Khokhar, who bagged 175 ballots, while four votes were rejected.

Mr Mazari was also heckled by PTI lawmakers, including former provincial education minister Murad Raas, when he arrived at the speaker’s desk to cast his vote.

In a separate move, PML-N on Saturday moved the Lahore High Court (LHC) challenging Mr Khan’s election, which it claimed “was held in an unconstitutional manner”.

On Friday, Opposition leader Hamza Shehbaz announced that the election would be challenged after the chair turned down the demand for re-polling.

PML-N MPAs Saiful Malook Khokhar and Mian Abdul Rauf filed a joint petition through Advocate Mansoor Usman Awan.

A two-judge bench comprising Justice Muzamil Akhtar Shabir and Justice Raheel Kamran would hear the petition on Monday.

According to the petitioners, the election of the speaker without a secret ballot was a “blatant violation of the Constitution”.

Secret ballot

Under the law, the speaker’s election was to be held through secret ballot as required under Article 226 of the Constitution read with Rule 9 of the Rules of Procedures of the assembly. However, when the voting commenced on Friday, it came to the petitioners’ knowledge that the election was not being held through a secret ballot.

The ballot papers and counterfoils had serial numbers in such a manner that each MPA’s vote could be identified by comparing the serial number on the ballot paper with the serial number and signatures of MPAs on the counterfoils, the petition explained.

Calling the election illegal and without jurisdiction, the petitioners also attached the serial numbered ballot papers with the petition.

The petitioners stated that they immediately pointed out this fact to the presiding officer and the assembly’s secretary verbally and moved a written application as well, but they refused to take any action.

Instead, they called the assembly’s security to attack the petitioners and their supporters, said the applicants.

The petition argued that the respondents, through their actions, violated the constitutional rights of the petitioners and the citizens of Pakistan guaranteed under Article 17(2) and Article 5 of the Constitution.

The Constitution has empowered the court to examine and adjudicate the validity of the assembly’s proceedings if they contravene the substantive or procedural provisions of the Constitution, the petition maintained.

The petitioners urged the court to set aside the election for being held in violation of the Constitution and order a fresh election.

The petitioners have also requested the court to restrain Sibtain Khan from exercising powers and performing functions of the speaker till the matter was decided.

Talking to the media after submitting the petition, PML-N’s deputy secretary general and prime minister’s special assistant Attaullah Tarar said the PML-Q has hijacked the PTI and committed blatant rigging during the speaker’s election.

Taking a jibe at Parvez Elahi, Mr Tarar called him a “judicial chief minister” and alleged that he has been brought to give an NRO to Farah Khan, a friend of former prime minister Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and facing corruption inquiries.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2022