KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly session, which was summoned on Friday after a two-day hiatus, started its proceedings at 10.07am only to be adjourned by Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani after some time for want of quorum.

There were hardly six lawmakers in the house of 168 while at least 42 legislators were required to make the quorum.

Even after recitation from the Quran, Naat and offering Fateha, the strength of the lawmakers did not cross six. Those present in the house were ministers Nisar Ahmad Khuhro and Dr Sikander Mandhro, Deputy Speaker Syeda Shehla Raza and lawmakers Khairunnisa Mughal, Erum Khalid and Shaheena Baloch.

The speaker said that some lawmakers accused him of not coming to the assembly on time, resulting in the delay to call the house in order. “Although there is no truth in the allegation as I am one of those who always come on time and today when I called the house in order on time, hardly a few members have turned up.

“The lawmakers ought to realise their responsibility of coming to the house on time.

“Today, as there is no quorum, therefore the session is deferred to Monday morning,” he said before rising from the chair.

Later, Speaker Durrani told the media that lawmakers ought to realise the importance of time. He warned the lawmakers that he would continue to adjourn sessions if they failed to come to the house on time in future.

In reply to a question, the speaker admitted that as far as legislation business was concerned, the performance of the Sindh Assembly was much better than that of other provincial assemblies.

When his attention was drawn towards the grant of a stay order by the Sindh High Court against a bill passed by the Sindh Assembly to regularise ad hoc employees, the speaker said that he along with the speakers of the national assembly as well as the provincial assemblies had consultation on the matter. He expressed the hope that a joint strategy would soon be evolved so that no one could be able to bypass the legislation approved by the assembly.

Talking to media persons in his chamber soon after the session was adjourned, Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Syed Faisal Sabzwari said the government wanted to escape from the issue of extrajudicial killing of Muttahida Qaumi Movement workers by adjourning the session soon after initiating the business without waiting for MQM lawmakers to reach the hall from their chamber which could have solved the quorum issue.

Deploring the decision of the speaker, Mr Sabzwari who was accompanied by MQM parliamentary party leader Syed Sardar Ahmad said the move was also against the reconciliation policy of the PPP.

Mr Ahmad later told the media that under the rules of the assembly business, if someone pointed out the quorum issue to the speaker, the latter could ask that the bell be rung for five minutes, followed by a 15-minute wait for the members to reach the hall after which if the speaker could defer or adjourn the session.

However, he complained, Speaker Durrani adjourned the proceedings 10 minutes after starting the session while MQM lawmakers after the bell was stopped were preparing to go to the hall.

In reply to a question, Mr Sabzwari claimed that it had been settled between the ruling party and the opposition in their parliamentary session that soon after the start of a session no one would raise the quorum issue.

He said they had reservations over the attitude of the speaker to start the session despite want of quorum and then to adjourn it for want of quorum.

PML-F Parliamentary Party leader Nand Kumar Goklani said the assembly session never met on time but was often called to order over 90 minutes behind the schedule.

The way the session started and adjourned soon appeared just a formality, he said.

PPP Parliamentary Party leader Nisar Ahmad Khuhro, who is also senior minister in the cabinet, told the media in his chamber that the speaker had the prerogative to adjourn the session after 15 minutes proceedings due to non-participation of the members.