ISLAMABAD: In the light of the Supreme Court’s verdict, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s resignation would strengthen parliament and democracy in the country, said Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khurshid Shah while talking to a group of reporters at the Parliament House here on Wednesday.

Recalling the demands put forward by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek during the 2014 protests, Mr Shah said he had opposed the demand for Mr Sharif’s resignation as it would have damaged the democratic system. This time around, democracy would suffer if the prime minister kept his office, he said.

The Pakistan Peoples Party leader pointed out that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, more than 180 sitting MNAs, and should, therefore, not find it hard to nominate someone for the office of the prime minister.

When the Supreme Court had disqualified Yousuf Raza Gillani as prime minister, the PPP had immediately selected Raja Pervez Ashraf for the post even though elections were only nine months away, he recalled. The PPP could have dissolved the National Assembly while keeping the provincial assemblies intact, but it saved the democratic and political system by nominating another party man for the office of the prime minister, he said.

The opposition leader lashed out at the government’s economic, security and agricultural policies. He condemned police action against wheat growers in various districts in Punjab on Tuesday, and said that the government was against farmers.

The police had baton-charged wheat growers at three procurement centres in Narowal and Shakargarh, causing injuries to 11 of them. The police arrived after a large number of farmers, who had gathered at wheat centres to collect gunny bags, protested against alleged mismanagement in the distribution of the bags.

Mr Shah said the present government had, in the past, resorted to such brutalities against farmers despite the fact that Pakistan had an agro-based economy.

The opposition leader also criticised the government for its failure to maintain security in the country, particularly in Islamabad. He alleged that the federal government had spent around Rs7 billion on improving the security apparatus in Islamabad, but even foreigners were not safe in the city.

He said that despite Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan’s claims regarding the improvement of security in Islamabad, a Canadian senator had been deprived of cash and valuables in the federal capital.

Mr Shah condemned the incident and expressed solidarity and sympathy with Canadian Senator Salma Attaullah Jan who was robbed of cash, a pearl necklace and her ID cards in Islamabad’s F-6 area on Tuesday night.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2017