ISLAMABAD: The Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser on Sunday condemned the incident that occurred outside the Parliament Lodges between leaders of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) a day earlier, saying it is incumbent upon all to respect the members of parliament.

Such mistreatment of parliamentarians is unfortunate, he said, and stressed the need to nurture a culture of decency, patience and compassion in national politics.

“The members of parliament are elected representatives of people and their respect is mandatory upon everyone,” he added.

The Speaker further said that a comprehensive inquiry of the incident should be carried out. He also emphasised on the role national leaders should play to ensure such incidents don’t happen in the future.

Tension between the government and the opposition, exasperated by relentless verbal duels, boiled over on Saturday as supporters of the ruling PTI and PNL-N got physical in the capital’s red zone and the melee was caught on tape.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021