Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle in the National Assembly on Monday engaged in an intense exchange of insults and physical altercation when the treasury presented bills related to the Supreme Court judges and the services chiefs’ tenure.
Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar presented the bills to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court and amend the SC Practice and Procedure Ordinance. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif introduced the amendment bill to extend the tenure of services’ chiefs.
After the bill bulldozed in the NA, the Senate also approved the bills. The government wants to increase the number of judges from 17 to 34 and further solidify the formation of constitutional benches to “clear the backlog of cases.”
Live footage showed Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif reading out bills in the august house. They and National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq were seen wearing headphones to avoid the noise and slogans from the opposition benches.
The lower house of Parliament, which was scheduled to start at 4pm, started at 6:50pm, after more than two hours delay.
Opposition members gathered in front of the speaker’s dais in protest against the legislation. They also tore apart the copy of bills in front of Sadiq.
Throughout the proceedings, the opposition created a ruckus, chanting slogans and expressing their dissent with cries of “No, no!”
In a chaotic session of the NA, opposition and treasury members clashed with each other, prompting the call for additional security personnel.
Tensions escalated as government and opposition members confronted each other in front of the speaker’s dais, chanting slogans such as “Maryam ka papa chor hai” and tearing up copies of the bills. Government members retaliated with chants like “Pinky, Gogi, aur Kaptaan, loot kar kha gaye Pakistan.”
The situation intensified when a physical altercation broke out between Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar and PTI member Shahid Khatak.
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Amid intense slogan-shouting, there were also instances of foul language used in the Assembly.
Despite the uproar, the speaker continued with the proceedings and, after the clause-by-clause approval of the amendment bills, adjourned the session until 11am the following morning.
