No member could be barred from voting & any action will be initiated after the dissident act is performed, NA Secretariat tells Speaker

ISLAMABAD, Mar 14 (SABAH): Amid the opposition’s no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, National Assembly  Secretariat had told Speaker Asad Qaiser that members of the assembly cannot be stopped from voting.

According to sources of a private TV channel, the speaker has consulted with the secretariat and sought answers to three questions.

The speaker asked if he could bar dissident lawmakers from voting to which the secretariat replied that no member could be barred from voting and any action will be initiated after the dissident act is performed. “The article 63 (1) (a) of the Constitution is clear in this regard,” they said.

To other questions that what could happen if the party head or chief whip send names of suspicious lawmakers and if any ruling could be given on dissent lawmakers ahead of the vote.

Sources further said that the secretariat said the speaker’s role would begin after declaration from the party chief. Ruling is the speaker’s prerogative, however, the constitution and laws are clear on the matter.

In response to Asad Qaiser’s query that whether he can take action against the suspicious members if the party shared their names, the department said that the speaker’s role starts after a formal declaration from the party chairman.

It is pertinent to mention here that on March 8, the Opposition had submitted the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly Secretariat.

A total of 86 lawmakers from the Opposition parties have signed the no-confidence motion, seeking the removal of PM Imran Khan.

Since then the government is mulling options on how to stop their party members from voting against the policy.