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• Opposition leader accuses govt of trampling Constitution, clipping judiciary’s wings
• Achakzai’s diatribe not aired on NA’s livestream as speaker vows not to allow criticism of ‘state, military or judiciary’
• PM briefs house on US-Iran talks, hopes for lasting deal within 60 days
ISLAMABAD: Tuesday was a tumultuous day at the National Assembly, which saw Speaker Ayaz Sadiq taking up a defiant stance in the face of bitter criticism from the opposition, prompting an opposition walkout before PM Shehbaz Sharif had a chance to brief the house on the US-Iran deal.
Following the lifting of curbs on the airing of opposition members’ speeches a couple of days ago, the house witnessed several lengthy speeches by opposition members, who had submitted their amendments to the finance bill.
The opposition’s tirades prompted the speaker to point out how they were being given time to speak on the floor. Yet, opposition members went out and held press conferences claiming that they are not given time to speak, he regretted, calling the practice “unfair”.
Around midday, as Defence Minister Khawaja Asif was responding to a point raised by a PTI lawmaker, PM Shahbaz Sharif entered the house and directly approached the opposition benches, greeting Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai, PTI leader Barrister Gohar and chief whip Amir Dogar.
The gesture was lauded by Mr Asif, who even mocked the opposition, asking: “Did this happen in the past three years? This is a new tradition being set by the PM, and we have even offered the opposition to come and talk to us on matters of national interest”.
The floor was then given to the opposition leader, who launched into a harsh diatribe, criticising the government, the judiciary and the establishment. The highly critical speech was not livestreamed on the NA’s social media channels, or broadcast live, and only those present in the lower house could hear him speak.
In his remarks, Mr Achakzai maintained that all lawmakers had taken an oath to protect the Constitution, and accused the speaker of supporting “undemocratic forces in trampling the Constitution”.
He said the incumbent government had clipped the wings of the judiciary, adding: “The government is about to complete two and a half years, we are tired of talking about the way you have conducted proceedings as speaker, not even [giving any importance to] the Constitution”. “You did not care about the Constitution and law when you dismissed 14 of your colleagues from the assembly,” he remarked, seemingly referring to the disqualification of PTI-aligned lawmakers.
He also criticised the government over the recent sentencing of a prominent Baloch activist, and assailed the way the recent unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir was handled.
He then turned towards PM Shehbaz Sharif, and called on him to speak about the rights of people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Balochistan as well.
As he continued, the NA speaker directed staff to mute his mic, saying that he would not allow anyone to speak against “Pakistan, the armed forces, and the judiciary”.
During cross-talk between PTI members and the speaker, Mr Sadiq stood his ground, saying, “If you call this a violation of the Constitution, then I am willing to commit such violations”.
Despite the fact that they repeatedly question the legitimacy of parliament, he said he had allowed the opposition to “speak for more than your allotted time”.
“Does parliament not appear fake to you then? Do you sit in the committees, despite being asked repeatedly?”
This led the opposition, except for the JUI-F, to walk out of the house.
PM’s briefing
With the opposition gone, the floor was given to PM Shehbaz Sharif, who expressed confidence that the US-Iran MoU will lead to a ‘long-standing agreement’ between the two states.
In his brief speech, he recalled developments from the recent summit, held in the Swiss resort of Buergenstock, where Pakistan and Qatar played the role of mediators.
“Pakistan tried its best, with complete sincerity, to bridge the distance between the two sides,” he said, adding that the dialogue that began on Sunday stretched past midnight into Monday.
He recalled that a joint statement was issued by the mediators in the early hours of Monday after the dialogue concluded, noting that technical talks would be held between the US and Iran over the next 60 days. The negotiations would also cover Iran’s nuclear assets, ballistic missiles and frozen assets, he added.
“We fully hope that the MoU will turn into a long-lasting agreement over the next 60 days, leading to peace in the world,” he hoped.
The premier went on to congratulate the nation and members of the House, including those from the opposition, highlighting Pakistan’s “key” and “historic” role in mediating between the two sides.
Mentioning that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was due for a state visit, he said their discussions would focus on strengthening ties between the two countries, and that this was not the time to bring up differences.
Responding directly to the opposition leader’s tirade, the premier recalled that Mr Achakzai had called the incumbent government “illegitimate”, and in turn, stated that the 2018 elections should be investigated, and whether the government formed in their wake was legitimate. If that was the case, the incumbent government was also legitimate, he mused.
Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2026
