February 26, 2008	Tuesday	Safar 18, 1429

MITHI, Feb 25: A member of the Tharparkar district council has accused the district nazim of forcibly keeping him away from the council session.

Arbab Abdul Malik said that being number two on the panel of the presiding officers, he was entitled to preside over the council’s session on Monday but the nazim and his men had restrained him in gross violation of the Sindh Local Government laws.

Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Mr Malik, who parted ways with the Arbab group, said that he was lawfully entitled to preside over the council’s session because the convenor, Abdul Karim, was on leave and Guman Singh Sodho (the senior-most presiding officer) was in India.

However, the district nazim, four taluka nazims, MPAs and MNAs, who, he alleged had won the elections through rigging, had deprived him of the opportunity to preside over the council’s session. He said that they had also threatened him.

He said that the district nazim had gotten his signature on the council’s agenda but he learnt that another council member, Mohammad Siddique Dal, would preside over the meeting on the orders of the nazim. He said that a new panel of presiding officers was formed after he was marked absent.

“The district nazim and other members wanted to move resolutions about rigging in elections in Thar and about police excesses in the Monday’s session, Mr Malik said. He said that he would move no-confidence motions against the district nazim and taluka nazims in March.

Meanwhile, according to a handout issued here, the session of the Tharparkar district council was held under Mohammad Siddique Dal.

Council member Kirshan Lal moved a resolution which called for electing new members for panel of presiding officers.

The council members unanimously elected Mohammad Siddique Dal, Sardar Khan Khoso and Dost Ali as new presiding officers.