Ijaz Kakakhel Islamabad
The PML-N leader Ishaq Dar, who arrived in Pakistan along with Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif Monday night, took oath as a senator amid protest by the PTI’s lawmakers her on Tuesday.
Opposition members strongly protested and surrounded the dais of the chairman senate as Ishaq Dar sworn in as a member of the upper house. During the ceremony, PTI senators gathered near the rostrum and chanted slogans such as “bhagora (absconder)”. Some of the opposition senators were also carrying placards and posters. A flustered Sanjrani repeatedly exhorted the rowdy senators to return to their seats but they refused to do so after which the security personnel was called in.
Opposition senators left their seats and reached in front of the dais while carrying protest banners in hands and chanted slogans. Soon after the oath, the chairman opened the floor for discussions. Subsequently, Leader of the House Azam Nazir Tarar welcomed Dar and hoped that he would serve the country, as he had done in the past.
Addressing the opposition, Tarar said: “We have always taken care of the sanctity of this house and we have always shown respect”. “The laws and Constitution are applicable to everyone, your reservations are your personal ones,” he added.
However, Leader of the Opposition Dr Shahzad Waseem said that the tradition of the house had never been that a “man absconds and comes back”. “His seat is empty for four years. An ordinance is introduced only to protect him.”
The PTI senator went on to allege that the prime minister helped Dar escape. “According to my information, he (Dar) has not surrendered before the court; he has come straight to the Senate. Does the Senate not have any respect? Absconders come and go. They, Shahzad contended, came in an aeroplane that was paid for by taxpayers, adding that the person accused of “ruining the economy” was being brought in again.
