ISLAMABAD: The continued boycott by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and a noisy protest by the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) members over the alleged biased attitude of Deputy Chair­man Syedaal Khan Nasar on Thursday disrupted the Senate proceedings as the sitting was adjourned without completing agenda due to lack of quorum.

The PPP senators, who had been boycotting the Senate session as a mark of protest against Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s outbursts against the party, stayed away from the proceedings.

As the Senate proceedings began after a two-day recess, PTI’s Humayun Moh­m­and took the floor and protested against the deputy chairman, accusing him of having a “biased” attitude towards the opposition.

“I have no trust in you….. I don’t think that you are worthy of conducting this session as an independent and unbiased person,” declared Mr Mohmand while castigating the deputy chairman over his act of shouting at a PTI senator during Monday’s sitting.

PTI demands dy chairman’s resignation over ‘biased conduct’; PPP continues its boycott; sitting adjourned during Question Hour due to lack of quorum

Mr Nasar has been conducting the present session in the absence of Senate Chairman Yousuf Raza Gilani, who is presently in Barbados (West Indies) to attend the 68th Commonwealth Parlia­mentary Conference.

During the Senate sitting on Monday, the deputy chairman had lost his temper when PTI’s Saifullah Abro was agitating against the chair for not giving him the floor to speak.

“Keep quiet and sit down,” the deputy chairman had snubbed the member, pro­mpting the opposition to stage a walkout.

Mr Mohmand accused the deputy chairman of disregarding the “dignity” of the members.

“Unfortunately, this cannot go on. I demand you [the deputy chairman] to step down,” said the PTI senator, suggesting that someone from the treasury should preside over the sitting.

The deputy chairman did not respond to Mr Mohmand and, instead, gave the floor to Khalil Tahir of the ruling PML-N to respond.

Defending the chair, Mr Tahir claimed that some of the members even used abusive language during the Senate’s proceedings. The PML-N senator suggested formation of a house committee to probe his allegations.

At this point, the opposition senators, led by Mr Mohmand, started raising loud slogans and desk-thumping, demanding Mr Nasar’s resignation. Mr Tahir could not complete his speech and was seen equally shouting at the opposition members before taking his seat.

Amid noises, the deputy chairman announced start of the Question Hour. Interestingly, the first question was in the name of Mr Mohmand, who refused to ask any supplementary question and reiterated his demand that the deputy chairman should resign.

Mr Nasar then started giving floor to the members to ask supplementary questions. However, due to noisy protest, the questions and the replies by the ministers could not be heard in the galleries.

An independent senator from Balochistan Abdul Qadir pointed out lack of quorum and the deputy chairman adjourned the sitting till Friday morning, announcing that the house is not complete. In order to maintain quorum in the 96-member Senate, the presence of 24 members is required.

Before announcing the adjournment, the deputy chairman said they had a plan to hold a debate on the present security situation in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, but the opposition kept on protesting.

“Dhamaal daaltay raho [keep dancing to drum beats],” Mr Nasar said as he left the chamber.

Published in Dawn, October 10th, 2025