KARACHI: Perveen Jun­e­jo of the PPP has denied that she willingly resigned as me­m­ber of the Sindh Asse­mbly and accused her husband of having forced her to sign the resignation paper at gunpoint.

Ms Junejo, who won the PS-76 (Dadu-III) seat in last year’s general elections, said she was surprised to see reports on Friday that Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani had accepted her resignation.

She alleged that her husband Aziz Junejo had got her signature on a typed resignation paper at gunpoint in the presence of Faryal Talpur, sister of PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari, and MNA Rafique Jamali.

She appealed to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Asif Zardari to take notice of the matter.

Talking to journalists here on Monday, she said she and Aziz Junejo, a former irrigation engineer, had estranged relations for about a year. On Sept 18, according Ms Junejo, her husband called her and asked her to see him at Zardari House in Karachi. Faryal Talpur and Rafique Jamali were present when she reached there.

She claimed that her husband had got her signature at gunpoint in their presence and asked her to leave the house immediately. He also accused her of having taken money from TMOs, although she was not allowed to visit her constituency during the past year, she added.

Ms Junejo asked how could her resignation be accepted by the speaker without inviting her to confirm it. She threatened to take the matter to court if the party leadership did not provide her justice.

Published in Dawn, September 23rd, 2014