ISLAMABAD: In a move to escalate pressure on the government following their resignations from National Assembly standing committees, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan announced on Monday that the party would boycott National Assembly sessions, protesting what it described as unfair treatment of its lawmakers.
Speaking at a press conference after chairing a meeting of the PTI parliamentary committee, he accused the state authorities of sidelining party lawmakers – both in the National Assembly and the Punjab Assembly – by disqualifying members and silencing their voices on the floor of the house.
“Even on Independence Day, our efforts to raise democratic demands were stifled. Despite numerous challenges, we attended sessions to raise issues, but were denied the opportunity to speak,” he lamented.
He said the PTI parliamentary party, meeting at the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House, had endorsed the directives of the party’s founding chairman Imran Khan and resolved to intensify their protest through boycott.
Later in the day, as PTI lawmakers continued submitting resignations from National Assembly standing committees, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq urged caution, stating there was no urgency to accept the resignations and that the matter would be resolved after consultations.
Speaking to reporters, the Speaker confirmed that only a few resignations had been received to date, including Barrister Gohar’s resignation from four NA committees.
He emphasised that efforts would be undertaken to persuade PTI lawmakers to reconsider their resignations, urging all parliamentarians to engage constructively in the legislative process.
“Not all resignations have been submitted yet. We are urging PTI MNAs to hold off on resigning. Decisions will be taken after thorough consultations,” he added.
However, Barrister Gohar ruled out the possibility of withdrawing the resignations, stating that all actions were being carried out on the directives of party founder Imran Khan, whose decisions, he said, were final and binding on all PTI lawmakers.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025