QUETTA: The ruling coalition’s parliamentary leaders and the opposition parties on Sunday boycotted a consultation meeting summoned by Balochistan Assembly Speaker Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo in the backdrop of the June 18 mayhem on the assembly premises.

Mr Bizenjo had sent an invitation to the parliamentary leaders of nine parties having representation in the Balochistan Assembly to discuss matters related to the budget session and some other issues.

A meeting of the ruling coalition parties was held here on Sunday, which was presided over by Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan. The parliamentary leaders of the six parties discussed the prevailing political situation in view of the opposition’s budget session boycott and the disturbing incidents that took place on July 18 on the assembly premises.

CM blames Qudoos Bizenjo for mayhem on assembly premises

The parliamentary leaders of the ruling coalition parties — Balochistan Awami Party president Alyani, Asghar Khan Achakzai (Awami National Party), Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind (Pak­­i­s­tan Tehreek-i-Insaf) Mir Asad­ullah Baloch (Balochistan National Party-Awami), Abdul Khaliq Hazara (Hazara Democ­ratic Party) and Nawa­bzada Gohram Bugti (Jamhoori Watan Party) — deplored the situation created on Friday and decided not attend the meeting convened by the speaker “in protest”.

Sources said that the chief minister held the speaker responsible for the situation created on the assembly presumes and said that a “change in this regard is possible”.

The participants said that the attitude adopted by the legislators of the opposition parties had hurt the privilege of the entire house. They said: “We are custodian of the traditions and values of Balochistan and would not allow anyone to destroy or violate these values under any circumstance.”

While expressing concern over the pandemonium on the assembly premises, the participants expressed reservations over the role of the speaker and officials of the Balochistan Assembly in the episode. “Had the speaker played his role in a better way, the situation would not have happened,” they said, adding that the situation was created due to irresponsible attitude of the speaker and officials of the provincial assembly, which had badly affected the budget session.

The chief minister heard the reservations of the parliamentary leaders of the coalition parties and said that upholding the supremacy of the parliament was their collective responsibility. He said that such an incident had never happened before in the history of Balochistan.

“Opposition has hurt the sanctity and dignity of the house,” Mr Alyani said and assured the participants of the meeting that the issue would be taken up at the BAP level.

Meanwhile, opposition leaders Malik Sikander Khan and Malik Naseer Shah­wani criticised the role of the speaker and said that despite request of the opposition parties he did not convene the pre-budget session of the assembly for a discussion on the budget.

They said that the speaker also did not bother to enquire after the health of the opposition MPAs injured in police action.

“We have decided to boycott the consultative meeting the speaker has summoned,” Mr Sikander said.

According to assembly officials, the speaker waited till afternoon but no leader of a parliamentary party, came to attend the meeting, except Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind, parliamentary leader of the PTI in the Balochistan Assembly.

Published in Dawn, June 21st, 2021