ISLAMABAD: ‘Disgruntled’ allies of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) and Pakistan Muslim League-Qaid (PML-Q) on Tuesday decided to vote for bills to be introduced in a . joint session Their concerns were addressed by the Prime Minister after Parliament Wednesday (today).
After this development, Prime Minister Imran Khan is looking forward to getting more than two dozen bills passed in the joint sitting of Parliament.
On the other hand, the opposition appeared dismayed and claimed that its MPs were getting calls refusing to attend the session.
Responding to a question from a journalist in the corridors of Parliament House on Tuesday, Prime Minister Khan said, “When a player steps into the field of play, he always believes in winning.” Mr Khan spent a busy day at Parliament House, meeting several MPs from PTI, MQM, PML-Q and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), who assured him of their support in getting the bills passed.
According to Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, around 28 bills will be introduced during the joint meeting, including the most controversial one related to the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in the next general elections and voting rights to foreign Pakistanis.
In a deal deal, the MQM, which was accusing the government of failing to control the rise in prices, has managed to win the Prime Minister’s assurance to meet their demands.
Opposition claims, members are being asked not to attend the session
The MQM had demanded the inclusion of two bills in the agenda of the joint meeting. They are the Hyderabad University Bill-2021 and the amendments to the Census Bill-2021, under which the constituencies of national and provincial assemblies will be re-demarcated in Karachi.
Fawad Chaudhry said, “The government has addressed the reservation of alliance partners, and now we will implement the laws pending in the House with their support.”
Responding to a question about the opposition’s claim that its members were being asked not to attend the joint meeting, the minister said: “I think the opposition’s hopes of breaking the law have been dashed.”
On the other hand, Pakistan Democratic Movement President Maulana Fazlur Rehman said that members of some opposition parties had received calls, refusing to attend the joint meeting. However, he did not specify who is approaching the opposition members.
Federal Information Technology Minister Syed Aminul Haque, who is from the MQM, said the government had assured his party that all its objections would be addressed.
With regard to the use of EVMs, Mr Haque said that the MQM had sought assurance from the government that the transparency and security of votes would not be compromised. “We were assured that our reservation in this regard will be looked into,” he said.
The IT minister said the government would also introduce amendments to the Hyderabad University Bill-2021 and the Census Bill-2021 as per the demand of the Karachi-based party.
When contacted, PML-Q spokesperson Kamil Ali Agha said that the government has accepted their demands and assured his party of including it in the decision-making process. Mr Agha said the government has postponed the scheduled joint sitting of Parliament on 11 November, so it should realize that it (the government) cannot run without the support of its allies.
“If the government betrays us again we will have the right to leave the ruling coalition,” he said, adding that once the prime minister accepted the PML-Q’s demands, how could that government leave.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly Secretariat released a 50-point agenda for the joint meeting which included a reference against 29 bills and the decision of the Council of Common Interests with regard to Census-2017.
Published in Dawn, November 17, 2021