PESHAWAR, Jan 16: As a light drizzle pattered on the roof of the provincial assembly building, a light mood prevailed inside the NWFP legislature as lawmakers from the opposition and treasury benches exchanged couplets to amuse the house on Friday.

The swap of couplets took place between Hafiz Akhter Ali of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal and Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the ANP stalwart, during the question-answer session. Speaker Kiramatullah Khan Chagharmati presided over the proceedings.

As the treasury and opposition benches were enjoying the friendly clash between the soft spoken cleric and the cheerful nationalist leader, Mr Chagharmati remarked in a delighted mood: “I think the environment in the house and outside is very romantic.”

The weather remained heavily overcast in the provincial capital and several parts of the city and its surrounding areas received light drizzle.

Hafiz Akhter Ali, during the question-answer session, accused the Awami National Party-led government of appointing party activists as administrators of Zakat committees in the Mardan District. He claimed that all the administrators appointed in his district belonged to the ANP and used Zakat for drawing political mileage.

PPP MPA from Upper Dir Anwar Khan, through a supplementary question, also complained that the coalition partner was bypassing him in distribution of Zakat in his constituency.

Minister for Zakat Zarshed Khan denied the allegations and said appointment of administrators of 222 Zakat committees had been made on merit and the district revenue officer under the Zakat Ordinance, 1980, had made the appointments. He said lists of the administrators had been provided to the mover and MPAs.

Musaret Shafi of the ANP informed the house about the leasing out of the government-run social welfare and women’s resource centre to an NGO, Mermen Centre, in Kohat.