Pakistan’s ruling coalition in Punjab loses 27 reserved seats after SC ruling
The Hindu
PML-N-led coalition in Punjab faces turmoil as 27 lawmakers on reserved seats are restrained by speaker
The ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Muslim League -Nawaz (PML-N) in Pakistan's Punjab has been jolted as the provincial assembly’s speaker restrained 27 lawmakers on reserved seats after the Supreme Court’s ruling suspending a lower court’s verdict denying the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) its share of reserved seats for women and minorities, according to media reports.
Speaker Malik Mohammad Ahmed Khan issued the ruling barring the women and non-Muslim members appointed to the reserved seats via past notifications of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), The Express Tribune newspaper reported.
According to the ruling, they cannot function as members or partake in assembly proceedings until their status is clarified by either the ECP or the Supreme Court.
Of the suspended MPAs, 23 belong to the PML-N, two to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and one each to Pakistan Muslim League -Quaid-e-Azam Group (PML-Q) and Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP), the Dawn newspaper reported.
The decision by the speaker was taken on a point of order raised a day ago by opposition lawmaker Rana Aftab of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed SIC during the house proceedings.
Mr. Aftab had argued that the apex court had suspended the decision of the ECP of allocating the reserved seats of the SIC to other parties on the plea that the SIC had neither contested elections nor had submitted a list of nominees for the seats reserved for women and minorities.
But Speaker Mr. Khan ruled that he had sought the opinions of the advocate general as well as the provincial law department and would take a decision only on receiving their reports, the Dawn reported.
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