Daily Times

The National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf Monday told the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders that they could not return to the lower house as their resignations had been accepted. A PTI delegation – led by Amir Dogar and comprising Kanwal Shauzab, Sajida Begum, Aamer Mehmood Kiani, Amjad Niazi, and others – met the NA speaker at his office in Islamabad. In a statement, the NA Secretariat mentioned that the PTI leaders spoke to the speaker about their resignations and demanded Ashraf revoke his decision to accept them. But undeterred, the speaker said that he had accepted the resignations in line with the rules and regulations, the Constitution, and the law of the land. “I sent out letters repeatedly, but no member from the PTI came before me. After delegations headed by Amir Dogar and Asad Qaiser met me, I started accepting the resignations,” he said.

The speaker explained that the delegation headed by Qaiser – which held a meeting with him in December last year – had asked that the PTI’s resignations be accepted. “Since it was their request, I am bound by the Constitution [to follow through],” he said. But Ashraf added that in line with the PTI’s latest request, he would consult with his legal team and inform the party.