The National Assembly Secretariat on Monday wrote a fourth letter to the opposition’s chief whip, Amir Dogar, seeking a written reply detailing court cases pending against former opposition leader Omar Ayub.

Since Omar Ayub’s disqualification by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the seat of the opposition leader in the lower house has been vacant. Meanwhile, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had maintained that the matter of the nomination of the opposition leader in the house is “sub judice”.

According to the press release issued by the NA Secretariat spokesperson, earlier letters on the same matter were sent on November 19, December 5, and December 19, 2025. “However, no response has so far been received by the National Assembly Secretariat,” it said.

The statement said that the “provision of this information is essential to fulfil the constitutional requirements for the appointment of the Leader of the Opposition”.

“The [National Assembly] Secretariat has been made a party in certain subjudice cases involving the former Leader of the Opposition, making it necessary to obtain the current status of the cases,” the statement said.

“In the letter, the Chief Whip of the Opposition has been requested to provide the requisite information regarding the current status of court cases pending against Omar Ayub, so that the process for the appointment of the Leader of the Opposition may be completed.“

The statement by the NA Secretariat elaborated that the process for appointing a new opposition leader can only proceed “upon receipt of the required information”.

In August, the ECP had disqualified the then-opposition leader in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub, following his conviction in cases related to the May 9 riots.

Later, incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan had nominated Mahmood Khan Achakzai for the post of opposition leader in the National Assembly.

The PTI leadership had emphasised that the protracted delay in the appointment of the opposition leader may erode the parliament’s credibility and undermine the democratic framework.