ISLAMABAD: PPP leader Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan has been appointed as the leader of the opposition in Senate for the second consecutive term after his nomination by Senate Chairman Mian Raza Rabbani.

The Senate Secretariat has already issued a notification in this regard.

Mr Ahsan enjoys the support of all the opposition parties represented in Senate, except the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Jamaat-i-Islami.

Read: Aitzaz set to retain post of opposition leader in Senate

After election of its six candidates as senators in March 5 polls, the PTI has got representation in Senate for the first time and it has decided to continue to play the role of an independent opposition group in the upper house.

As many as 46 members belonging to the PPP, ANP, MQM, PML-Q, BNP-A and two independent senators from Fata had submitted a request to the Senate chairman seeking Mr Ahsan’s appointment as the leader of the opposition.

The PPP at present has 26 senators whereas the MQM and the ANP have eight and seven members, respectively, in the upper house. The PML-Q and the BNP-A have three members each in Senate where despite winning the maximum number of seats in recent polls, the ruling PML-N is in minority.

He was backed by all opposition parties, except PTI, JI

With Mr Ahsan’s appointment as leader of the opposition, all the main posts in Senate have been filled. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has already appointed Raja Zafarul Haq as leader of the house whereas newly elected Senator Iqbal Zafar Jhagra has been appointed as the parliamentary leader of the ruling PML-N in Senate.

Similarly, after election of Mr Rabbani as the Senate chairman, PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari nominated Saeed Ghani as the new parliamentary leader of PPP in Senate.

President Mamnoon Hussain has summoned the first session of the reconstituted Senate on April 6.

Sources in the Senate Secretariat told Dawn that initially the session was planned to be convened on March 30, but the government delayed it in a move to enable the president to promulgate an ordinance to constitute a judicial commission as per agreement with the PTI.

Under the Constitution, the president cannot promulgate an ordinance if any of the two houses of the parliament — the National Assembly or Senate — is in session.

The delay in summoning of the session is expected to cause a delay in the formation of the standing committees. Under the rules, the members of the committees are required to be elected from Senate.

However, to avoid complications, traditionally the house in its first session through a resolution authorises the chairman to constitute the committees.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2015

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