April 10, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 3, 1429

LAHORE, April 9: The newly-elected Punjab Assembly called upon the federal government on Wednesday to seek a UN probe into the assassination of PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto. It also condemned the Oct 12, 1999, army takeover, ‘forced exile’ of the Sharifs and Ms Bhutto, incarceration of Asif Zardari and state oppression against political activists during the past eight years.

The house, in its first session, adopted two resolutions which the movers claimed had been allowed by the outgoing speaker, Mr Afzal Sahi, after an hour-long discussion.

The chair ‘gave in’ only when PPP parliamentary leader Raja Riaz announced that his party’s legislators would not sign the Roll of Members, a legal requirement after taking the oath, unless the resolution were allowed to be tabled.

The ensuing debate was peppered with occasional sloganeering ‘Zinda Hai Bibi Zinda Hai” and “Ab Raj Karay Gi Benazir’ by PPP MPAs and ‘Go Musharraf, Go’ by PML-N members.

The first resolution seeking the UN probe was adopted unanimously while the PML-Q members opposed the second one.

The session started 50 minutes late and immediately after recitation of the Holy Quran, PML-N leader and speaker designate Rana Iqbal and PPP’s Raja Riaz asked the chair if they were taking oath under the 1973 Constitution.

Despite the chair’s assurances, many PML-N and PPP MPAs added the words, “the Constitution as it was on Nov 2, 2007”, in the oath.

At least 351 members of the 371-strong house, including 75 women and 10 belonging to minority communities, took the oath.

PPP’s Asad Moazzam took the oath but did not sign the Roll of Members, while two PML-Q MPAs, Walayat Shah Khagga and Ata Maneka, did not attend the session.

Sixty-six women members have been elected on reserved seats and nine on general seats. By-polls are to be held for 17 seats while result of one constituency has been withheld by court.

The house also offered Fateha for Ms Bhutto and other people who died in rioting following her assassination.

The proceedings were witnessed by PML-N president Mian Shahbaz Sharif and Punjab PML-Q chief and former chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, who were greeted on their arrival in the galleries by their respective party MPAs.

When PML-Q MPAs resorted to desk thumping on the arrival of Pervaiz Elahi in the Officials’ Gallery, the PML-N and PPP members together shouted ‘shame … shame’.

Mr Elahi left when the issue of the resolution was raised after the oath-taking.