ISLAMABAD, April 28: A political truce held on for the second consecutive working day of the National Assembly on Monday as the lower house adjourned for two days to express sorrow at a colleague’s death and to back up government-opposition talks to settle their row on sweeping presidential powers.

But outside the House, there was no sign yet of a meeting point between the two sides of the political divide except expression of wishes for a success.

Opposition members of the 342-seat Assembly came to the House on Monday without wearing usual protest badges on their chests and, as agreed on the first day of the truce on Friday, did not chant slogans against President Pervez Musharraf or the Legal Framework Order (LFO) that gives him the controversial powers.

In only about five minutes’ proceedings, the House unanimously adopted a government-moved resolution to express its deep sorrow on Sunday’s death of Mohajir Qaumi Movement member of the House from Karachi, Mehmood Qureshi, due to heart attack.

The resolution, moved by Minister of State for Law, Justice, Human Rights and Parliamentary Affairs Mohammad Raza Hayat Harraj also paid tribute to the “honest and sincere” person, for whom the House also offered fateha, before Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain adjourned it until 10.30am on Wednesday.

Monday’s was a thinly attended sitting, with most of the opposition top-notches like People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) leader Amin Fahim, Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) alliance leaders Qazi Hussain Ahmed and Maulana Fazlur Rehman being absent.

But opposition sources said these leaders would join the second round of talks with Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali and other top leaders of the ruling coalition later at night.

“All opposition parties are united on the point that the LFO has no validity without approval by parliament and it cannot become part of the constitution without passage by a two-thirds majority of both Houses (of parliament),” senior MMA leader Liaquat Baluch told reporters after the session’s adjournment.

He said the first meeting between the delegations of the ruling coalition and the combined opposition parties on Friday had identified LFO’s contentious parts and “today’s meeting will discuss their details”.

Mr Baloch said a meeting with President Musharraf was also expected in the third or fourth round of the talks.

But Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) acting president Javed Hashmi struck discordant note, saying his party would not talk to Gen Musharraf whom it regarded a “usurper” for toppling its government in the October 1999 coup.

However, he said the PML-N recognized Mr Jamali as an elected prime minister and “we will talk to him with an open mind.”

Mr Baloch said the opposition looked forward to hearing Mr Jamali’s point of view about the disputed clauses of the LFO after his meetings with President Musharraf and political allies after Friday’s first round of talks.