LAHORE, Oct 24: Former federal minister Begum Abida Husain has denied reports that she will be taking part in a by-election on the National Assembly seat vacated as a result of Maulana Azam Tariq’s assassination.

She said in a statement here on Friday that she regarded the present assembly as a rubber stamp and thus would not like to become a part of it.

She said it was a golden opportunity for Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat to take his brother Asad to the legislature as he had lost to the Maulana in the general election.

Begum Abida, who now plans to join the ARD along with some other disgruntled leaders of the PML-Q, offered condolences over the death of Maulana Azam Tariq. — Staff Reporter