ISLAMABAD, March 11: The People's Party Parliamentarians (PPP) and the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) MNAs on Thursday occupied the chambers of the opposition leader and deputy opposition leader, respectively, in the Parliament House.

PPP secretary-general Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and other party MNAs also addressed a news conference at the opposition leader chamber which was occupied by the opposition members after the speaker adjourned the session for half an hour for Zohr prayers.

Soon after occupying the chamber, the MNAs hanged portraits of party chairperson Benazir Bhutto. The members, who were present at this time, were Naheed Khan, Syed Khursheed Shah, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Chaudhry Manzoor, Zulfiqar Gondal, Nawab Yousuf Talpur, Ramesh Lal, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Senator Safdar Abbasi.

Later, Syed Khursheed Shah invited MMA MNA Asadullah Bhutto and offered him the chamber of the deputy opposition leader. MMA general-secretary Maulana Fazlur Rahman, after delivering his speech in the assembly, came to the chamber and remained there for sometime with other members and supporters.

Talking to reporters on the occasion, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf asked the speaker to formally nominate Makhdoom Amin Fahim as the opposition leader. He appreciated the speaker for asking Mr Fahim to open the debate in the assembly on the address of Gen Pervez Musharraf to the joint sitting.

He said it was good to see that the speaker had followed the past tradition, under which the opposition leaders always started debates on important issues. "This is an acceptance to the democratic norms and practices," he added.

He said the ARD was the largest opposition group in the assembly and Mr Fahim had the support of 80 MNAs. He criticized the government for making efforts to break major opposition parties. He said the PPP would not be weakened with the defections of a few people.

"Such defections will only cause damage to the democracy and bring a bad name to the country," the PPP MNA said. He evaded a direct question about Amin Fahim attending the meeting of the proposed National Security Council (NSC) if he was officially nominated as the opposition leader.

"We will decide it when the time comes," Mr Ashraf said when asked to give a categorical reply. He, however, said if the NSC was approved by a majority then they would have to accept it but with "reservations". He said whenever the ARD got majority in the parliament, it would eliminate this body.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the National Assembly Secretariat, Tahir Khushnood, issued a press note in the evening, alleging that the opposition members had 'forcefully' occupied the chambers.

He said: "When the CDA staff was busy in routine cleaning of rooms in the Parliament House, some members of the MMA and ARD entered the chamber earmarked for the opposition leader. He said the members "pushed the staff out of the chamber and occupied it forcefully".

When Mr Khushnood's attention was drawn to the fact that according to eye-witnesses the chamber had not being occupied forcefully, he said the press note had been issued on the version of the CDA staff members. He said there was a procedure for allotment of the chamber and since the speaker had not nominated any opposition leader, therefore, this was a wrong act.