Wasiq Qayyum takes oath as PA deputy speaker

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi on Sunday took oath as deputy speaker of Punjab Assembly, ARY News reported.

Abbasi was elected the deputy speaker of the Punjab Assembly unopposed after no other candidate filed nomination papers for the post.

Speaker Punjab Assembly Sibtain Khan administered oath to Wasiq Qayyum. The MPAs of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan People’s Party did not attend today’s Punjab Assembly session.

The deputy speaker’s slot fell vacant after a no-trust motion, tabled by PTI’s Raja Basharat, ousted Dost Mohammad Mazari from the office.

PML-N challenges PA speaker election

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has challenged the election of PTI’s Sibtain Khan as speaker Punjab Assembly in the Lahore High Court (LHC), alleging that the poll was not held through secret ballot.

The appeal from PML-N was moved by Mansoor Usman Awan stating that the election process did not fulfil constitutional and legal formalities.

“The election for speaker is held through a secret ballot and printing serial numbers on the ballot papers for the election held on Friday violated the legal and constitutional binding,” it said and demanded of the LHC to declare the election of Sibtain Khan as null and void and order a re-election of the speaker Punjab Assembly.

It is pertinent to mention here that PTI candidate Sibtain Khan was elected as the new speaker of the Punjab Assembly on Friday.