Prime Minister Imran Khan Thursday said nobody has the right to ‘humiliate’ ministers, as Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani banned entry of Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry for failing to apologise over alleged use of unparliamentary language during the Wednesday’s proceedings.
Talking to media after a cabinet meeting, Fawad said the federal cabinet in its meeting held discussion with regard to Senate chairman’s ruling. During the meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan observed that nobody had the right to humiliate the ministers, he said, adding that Defense Minister Pervaiz Khattak has been tasked to look into the matter and talk to Senate chairman to sort out the issue.
Earlier, the information minister was barred from attending Thursday’s Senate session after he failed to apologise as directed by the Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani for inciting uproar during Wednesday’s session.
Sanjrani had demanded an apology and warned the minister that he would be barred from Senate if he failed to apologise, as the opposition staged a walkout protesting his remarks during Wednesday’s session.
Speaking in the Upper House on Wednesday, Fawad had accused Pushtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief Mehmood Achakzai of robbing the country and making anti-state statements. The accusation had resulted in a strong response from PkMAP Senator Usman Kakar, who accused Fawad of ‘licking the boots’ of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf. The Senate chairman had intervened and more than once asked Fawad not to use ‘unparliamentary’ language, saying that running the House was the government’s responsibility and it needed to exercise greater tolerance towards the opposition. Fawad, however, had continued with his accusations and Sanjrani eventually had to turn off his mic amid uproar by the opposition.
As the session got under way on Thursday, the chairman warned Fawad that he would be barred from the Senate if he did not apologise for the Wednesday’s ruckus. The info minister, however, failed to apologise, and was subsequently barred from attending the session.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Fawad questioned how the House could be run without ministers. He said the ministers had a vital role in House proceedings, adding that they could not perform their tasks if the attitude of the chairman did not change. “In my speech in Senate, I did not use unparliamentary words and I only stated that Rs 42 trillion were given to Balochistan government in 10 years and during the period opposition parties had been ruling the province, so they should be asked where they had spent the funds,” Fawad said. “On the contrary, Mushahidullah Khan used derogatory remarks against the prime minister and me but he was not asked to apologize,” he said. “It is strange that when the PTI leadership talks about the corruption and rights of the poor, the privilege of the House members is breached but privilege of the masses is never breached by loot and plunder of national resources,” he lamented.
Published in Daily Times, November 16th 2018.
