May 20, 2005	Friday	Rabi-us-Sani 11, 1426

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MUZAFFARABAD, May 19: An opposition lawmaker’s remarks about the AJK Legislative Assembly Speaker on Thursday incurred the latter’s wrath and was ordered to leave the house. The incident occurred during the question-hour when the prime minister’s adviser on information, Ms Noreen Arif, was responding to a question by People’s Party’s Chaudhry Maqbool Ahmed about the number of Kashmiri refugees serving in the Public Relations Department. As the adviser finished reading out her answer, Mr Ahmed said the information provided to the house was incorrect as some AJK-based people had been shown as refugees.

Speaker Sardar Siab Khalid, ignoring Mr Ahmed’s objections, called for the next question. This made Mr Ahmed angry and in the heat of the moment he uttered some objectionable remarks about the speaker and the microphone was switched off. The comment enraged the speaker who immediately ordered Mr Ahmed’s expulsion from the house and his suspension from the session. The sergeant-at-arms was asked to evict him from the house.

At this point other lawmakers left their seats and engaged in efforts to stave off the expulsion. In the meantime, opposition member Haji Javed Akhtar managed to take Mr Ahmed out of the house before the sergeant-at-arms could approach him.

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