PESHAWAR: Quorum issue disrupted the proceedings of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Friday, forcing the chair to adjourn the sitting till Monday after only taking up a single item on the day’s agenda.

       Deputy Speaker Mahmood Jan, who chaired the sitting, ordered the staff to ring the bells to bring in the members, but in vain. The chair adjourned the sitting thrice despite the quorum remained incomplete.

       The government had convened the session on Wednesday.

       When the proceedings started, total 35 lawmakers were present in the House. The chair adjourned the sitting for five minutes to complete the quorum. However, only 27 MPAs were present when the last headcount was carried out.

       Deputy Speaker Mahmood Jan snubbed Mutahidda Majlis-i-Amal MPA Munawar Khan when he raised point of order to speak about the police raid on the parliament lodges in Islamabad on Thursday night, and manhandling of MNAs and supporters of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl.

       When the chair refused to give him floor, a member from the opposition benches pointed out the quorum.

       Mr Jan insisted he would follow rules of business and would give him (Munawar) the floor only after question hour. The sitting was adjourned sitting till Monday.

       Main items on the agenda were the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Press, Newspapers, News Agencies and Books Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2022, and discussion on adjournment motion on fresh wave of terrorism in the province in the backdrop of the suicide attack at a mosque in Peshawar.

       Published in Dawn, March 12th, 2022