– Sibtain Khan had termed Governor’s Orders to CM for Confidence Vote as illegal
-PTI claims Party lawmakers being offered bribes by Zardari
-Pervez Elahi says PML-Q ‘wholeheartedly’ standing with PTI
From Abid Usman
LAHORE: Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman declared on Wednesday the ruling of Punjab Assembly Speaker Sibtain Khan regarding Chief Minister Pervez Elahi’s vote of confidence as “unconstitutional” and “illegal”.
On December 19, the governor had instructed the chief minister to obtain a vote of confidence from the provincial assembly by 4pm yesterday (Wednesday).
However, on Tuesday, Punjab Assembly Speaker Sibtain Khan termed the governor’s orders as “illegal, against the provisions of the Constitution and thus stand disposed of”.
In his two-page ruling, the speaker maintained that the governor’s orders were not in accordance with Article 54(3) and Article 127. “The house is in session since Oct 23, 2022, and under Article 54(3) and 127. No fresh session can be convened unless and until the current one ends,” the order read.
In a four-page response to the speaker today, the governor said that Khan’s ruling held “no bearing”. Rehman addressed two main concerns raised in Khan’s ruling, which had said that the governor could not summon a fresh assembly session until the current session was prorogued and that there was a minimum mandatory 10-day pe-riod for the chief minister to obtain a confidence vote.
Regarding the first concern, the governor said he had implied in his Dec 19 order that “if the ongoing session was pro-rogued by your good self (PA speaker)” any time before 4pm today then “a new session was required to be sum-moned” at 4pm today for the vote of confidence.
“In the alternate, a sitting of the assembly at the noted time and date could have been summoned in the 41st session of the assembly, which your good self has also noted that it was summoned by me and was never prorogued; or a fresh session specifically summoned for the purposes of requiring the chief minister to obtain the vote of confidence,” the order reads. The governor said that the Constitution did not prevent Article 130(7) from taking effect if the assembly was already under session. “Your reading of the Constitution essentially renders Article 130(7) redundant.”
Rehman’s order added that the PA speaker’s reliance on a Lahore High Court judgment was “misplaced inasmuch as the facts and circumstances involved in this judgment are clearly distinguishable”.
The governor further pointed out that the PA speaker’s ruling violated Rule 209 of the Rules of Procedure of the Pro-vincial Assembly of the Punjab, 1997.
“Under sub-rule (1), a ruling on interpretation and enforcement of the relevant articles of the Constitution as regulate the business of the assembly can only be given on a ‘point of order’. It is evident that no point of order was raised on the floor of the house on December 20, and as it seems, your good self has given the ruling in your office, which is in violation of Rule 209(1),” the order explained.
Governor Rehman noted that as the “custodian of the house and holder of an esteemed constitutional office”, it was imperative for the PA speaker not to act in a “partisan manner; or for that matter, in any other way that violates your oath”.
“I would like to draw your attention that, as per the Constitution, the assembly’s currently being in session or other-wise does not have any effect whatsoever on the operation of Article 130(7).”
The order said the PA speaker’s ruling and actions had enabled the chief minister in refraining from the confidence vote
“Helping and aiding the chief minister in refraining from fulfilling his duty and preventing the constitutional process to proceed to its logical end leads to the consequences stipulated in Rule 22 (7) of the Rules of Procedure of the Provin-cial Assembly of the Punjab, 1997,” it concluded.
Earlier in the day, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry warned the governor to “refrain from any adventures”.
Speaking to the media in Islamabad yesterday, he asserted that the vote of confidence would not be held today, say-ing that the speaker had also issued a ruling in this regard.
Later, in a tweet, the PTI leader said that Elahi had the “complete support” of 187 members of the provincial assembly.
“Ten lawmakers of PML-Q have also expressed confidence in the chief minister. Tomorrow, 177 PTI MPAs will gather in favour of Elahi,” he stated, adding that the political crisis in Punjab was a reflection of the need for snap polls.
Later, in a media talk, Chaudhry claimed that PTI MNAs were being offered bribes by former president Asif Ali Zardari.
“The MPAs told Imran Khan that they got calls in Multan and Lahore […] they were told to abstain and remain missing from the vote of confidence [against Elahi], but they rejected that too,” he said.
Meanwhile, CM Elahi has also said that his party was “wholeheartedly” standing with PTI chairman Imran Khan.
“Muslim League Quaid-e-Azam is united and will remain united. Rumor mongers are following a specific agenda,” he tweeted, adding that the “nefarious intentions” of those propagating differences will fail.
He also held a parliamentary party meeting with PML-Q lawmakers. In a tweet, the chief minister said that the partici-pants discussed the political situation of Punjab and chalked the way forward for the party.
