ISLAMABAD: After its solo flight for over two years and its failure to topple the government through sit-ins, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf has decided to contact Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Ahmed Shah of the PPP for the sake of an effective opposition in the house.

The decision was taken on Monday at a meeting of the PTI’s parliamentary party presided over by its central leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

It was said at the meeting that the attitude of National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had been discriminatory against the PTI and so far no chamber had been allotted to it.

Also read :PTI emerges as main opposition during speaker’s election

The chairmanship of three standing committees has been given to the PTI but two of the chairmen are no more in the party. The chairmanship of both the committees should be given to the PTI.

Speaker accused of discrimination

Mr Qureshi said the PTI was being ignored in setting the agenda of the National Assembly and over the past two and a half years not a single adjournment motion of the party had been included in it. The speaker did not allow any bill submitted by the party.

The PTI also expressed concern over what it called weak and ineffective legislations.

Later talking to reporters, Mr Qureshi said the party’s senators had also attended the meeting and they said there was a better environment in the upper house of parliament where the opposition’s voice was being heard.

“Although National Assembly speaker behaves well, he never facilitates the MNAs of our party. The PTI has no chamber in the assembly but the PPP has two chambers,” Mr Qureshi said.

“We cannot hold meetings in the National Assembly and the injustice affects our efficiency,” he said.

“We have handed over an application, in writing, to the speaker that Siraj Khan and Gulzar Khan have left the PTI so the chairmanship of standing committees should be given to the party as per quota,” he said.

“We have seen that the government bills come in the agenda of the assembly without debate due to which quality of legislation is affected.”

Mr Qureshi said there are three major opposition parties in the assembly but only the PPP was considered as an opposition party. “We will talk to Mr Khursheed Shah that the chamber of opposition should be used by all opposition parties. If the PPP wants to play the role of real opposition it should not ignore us.”

He also said that the meeting of the Council of Common Interests was not being convened which was a violation of law.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2015