KARACHI, June 21: Owing to pandemonium, a little discussion on budget could be held in the Sindh Assembly on Monday. The treasury benches also looked not keen enough.
Trouble started as soon as MMA's deputy parliamentary leader Nasrullah Shaji offered fateha and included in it the name of Nek Mohammad, the militant tribal leader killed in Wana.
The treasury bench members had no objection to the fateha for the late PPP leader, Munawwar Suhrawardy, and they themselves asked the house to pray the military men killed in the Wana operation. However, they could not tolerate the house offering fateha for Nek Mohammad.
Soon after the fateha, MMA members staged a walkout because Ms Rahila Tiwana was chairing the session. The MMA does not recognize Ms Tiwana as a member and regards her election as controversial. Some PPP legislators also left the house along with the MMA members.
The rumpus took an ugly turn when opposition leader in the house Nisar Khuhro, on a point of order, tried to draw the attention of the house to a clipping of a newspaper and to seek time for a debate on Munawwar Suhrawardy's killing in the context of deteriorating law and order situation.
This was strongly objected by treasury benches, especially Muttahida Qaumi Movement members, who stood up and indulged in a noisy verbal bout with opposition members during which some members resorted to abuses and made uncalled for gestures, regarded as indecent and unparliamentary behaviour.
Nisar Khuhro went up to the Speaker's desk and showed her the newspaper clipping. He also went up to some other treasury bench members who did now show any interest.
The war of words intensified to the extent that the members seemed just short of exchanging blows and grappling with each other. Some women MPAs of PPP, including Farheen Mughal and Nuzhat Pathan, went up to the treasury benches and exchanged hot words with the members.
In the meantime, saner members from both sides kept trying to keep the enraged members at some distance. The chair, finding it impossible to restore order, adjourned the proceedings till 2pm.
When session resumed to hold a debate on budget, the situation grew tense again as PPP's Rafique Engineer was obstructed in speaking on a point of order. The member wanted to tell the house that he had received murder threats from one, Fawad Ahmed, who, according to the MPA, was a resident of block 14, Federal B Area.
Opposition members gathered in front of the Speaker's chair and demanded her to allow Rafique Engineer to speak. On the subsequent request by Minister for Law Chaudhry Iftikhar Ahmed and Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmed, Rafique Engineer was finally allowed to speak on his point of order.
The PPP member said that he had received the call on his mobile phone and the caller warned: "you will be killed like Abdullah Murad if you did not mend your ways."
Rafique Engineer deplored that terrorists, after subjecting police, bureaucrats and common citizens to threats, had now started threatening legislators. He urged the judiciary to take suo motu notice of the threat.
He also called for the setting up of a house committee to look into the matter. However, the proposal was opposed by the law minister who promised an inquiry into the matter and asked the member for more details, saying that it was a serious matter.
Later, when the chair did not allow Mr Nisar Khuhro and Syed Murad Ali Shah to speak on their points of order, there was an uproar again. The chair, in the meantime, gave the floor to Dr Saeeda Malik of treasury benches to speak on budget.
She praised the finance minister for presenting a balanced budget and urged the opposition to join hands with the government in protecting Sindh from coming under Governor's rule. Ignoring opposition member's calls for a chance to speak on budget, the chair gave floor to another treasury member Sultan Khuhawar to continue the debate.
Opposition members stood up and went up to the Speaker's desk raising slogan 'Go Rahila Go'. As the situation went out of her control, Ms Tiwana adjourned the session for the day. The house will meet again on Tuesday morning.