The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly’s newly elected members took the oath of office following the session’s over-an-hour delay caused by a disturbance produced by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers within the legislature.
The session was supposed to start at 11 a.m., but it was postponed because the elected lawmakers were having trouble getting into the Assembly hall. Several PTI members attempted to enter the room and even threw a shoe and a “lota” at Sobia Shahid, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
As many as 113 freshly elected members who were chosen to serve on general assembly seats were sworn in at today’s session by Speaker Mushtaq Ghani.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is still hearing the petition, hence the 30 seats designated for women and minorities have not been notified. The KP Assembly has 145 members.
There are 26 seats in the Assembly set aside for women and four seats for minorities.
Two general seat elections were delayed in the meantime due to the passing of candidates in those respective constituencies.
Following the administration of the oath, Speaker Ghani declared that tomorrow, February 29, would be the day for the House’s election of speakers and deputy speakers.
MPAs who are interested in running for the coveted spot have till today at 5 p.m. to turn in their nomination documents. The speaker stated that individuals who choose to remove themselves from the polls have till midnight to retrieve their ballots.
Speaker Ghani declared, “Polling for the positions of deputy speaker and speaker will take place tomorrow at 10am.”
Aqibullah Khan was declared by PTI founder Imran Khan as the KP speaker candidate.
However, it has come to light today that the founder of the PTI has changed his mind about Aqibullah Khan’s appointment as the new speaker.
PTI chief Omar Ayub Khan announced the news on social media, writing, “[Imran] Khan Sahib has nominated Babar Salim Swati as the candidate for the position of Speaker KP Assembly.”
PM Imran Khan Sahib has nominated Babar Salim Swati MPA as the candidate for the position of Speaker KP Provincial Assembly. @PTIofficial
— Omar Ayub Khan (@OmarAyubKhan) February 28, 2024
Additionally, the Awami National Party had declared it would demonstrate outside the legislature, which was holding its inaugural session, therefore at least 350 police officers were stationed outside the KP Assembly building.
Geo News reports that internet access has also been cut off in the vicinity of the KP Assembly.
Following the national elections held on February 8, the KP Assembly is sworn in as the third provincial legislature.
The assembly of Sindh and Punjab were sworn in last week.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of Article 109 of the Constitution [..] the Governor of KP has been pleased to summon the provincial assembly to meet on February 28, 2024, at 11am […] for taking the oath of its members, election and oath of the speaker and deputy speaker,” read the assembly’s summons that was issued last week.
Additionally, internet access has been cut off in the vicinity of the KP Assembly.
The KP Assembly is the third provincial legislature to assume office following the general elections on February 8.
The assembly of Sindh and Punjab were sworn in last week.
Speaker Mushtaq Ghani is anticipated to give the newly elected provincial legislators their oath of office during today’s session.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of Article 109 of the Constitution [..] the Governor of KP has been pleased to summon the provincial assembly to meet on February 28, 2024, at 11am […] for taking the oath of its members, election and oath of the speaker and deputy speaker,” according to the official announcement made this week regarding the meeting.
After the elections on February 8, the independent candidates supported by the PTI—who have since joined the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC)—became the largest party with ninety-nine seats. They are now in a position to form the province’s government, with Ali Amin Gandapur being nominated as the chief minister candidate.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has five seats, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has four, and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) has seven.
The Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Parliamentarians (PTI-P) have won one and two seats, respectively.
It is likely that the SIC (basically PTI-backed candidates) would succeed in electing Gandapur as the province’s chief executive due to their majority in the House, despite efforts by the PML-N to gather support from other opposition parties including the PPP, ANP, and the JUI-F to bring its own candidate for the chief minister slot.
I am a dedicated student currently in my seventh semester, pursuing a degree in International Relations. Alongside my academic pursuits, I am actively engaged in the professional field as a content writer at the Rangeinn website.