Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday reiterated his demand for issue of production orders of MNAs Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar, who were taken into custody earlier this week over their involvement in the North Waziristan army checkpost attack. Addressing a press conference outside the National Assembly, the PPP chairman said he had written a letter to NA Speaker Asad Qaiser demanding that production orders be issued for the MNAs. “Despite having evidence that the letter was received, today in the NA we were lied to and told that they did not get the letter,” he said, and raised the demand for issue of the production orders again, saying that the parliament should follow its own rules and laws.
Bilawal, in his letter, had stated on Thursday that as per rules 103 and 105 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the NA, the relevant authorities must immediately inform the speaker of the arrest of any member of the Lower House on criminal charges, and the speaker must then announce it to the assembly in session, or via circulation if the assembly is not in session. However, he said, the House was not informed about the arrest of Wazir and Dawar on criminal charges, nor were their production orders issued. He added that although PPP MNA Naveed Qamar had formally raised the issue, his plea was ignored.