Opposition stages walkout from PA over 'police harassment'

Lawmakers protest raids on homes, claim families were threatened

LAHORE:

Opposition lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly staged a walkout on Wednesday in protest against what they described as police harassment of their families and threats to their political careers.

"Our protest today is against the conduct of the establishment," said Opposition Leader Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar, announcing the walkout.

He alleged that police officials had not only humiliated their families and children during raids but also threatened lawmakers to abandon politics permanently.

Bhachar further claimed that during the raids, police officers told lawmakers that they were acting on the directives of a secret agency. "I am sharing this on the assembly's forum to put it on record," he stated.

The opposition leader accused Speaker and Deputy Speaker of being "worthless" and said their presence in the assembly was meaningless in the face of such treatment.

Lawmakers carried placards and raised slogans in favour of PTI's founding chairman, Imran Khan.

During the protest, PTI MPA Farrukh Javaid condemned police actions, stating, "Women and children should be kept away from politics."

He alleged that law enforcement officials had raided their homes and even taken innocent children into custody.

Another PTI MPA, Shahid Raza, recounted a February 8 raid on his house, claiming that police damaged vehicles and used abusive language in front of his family.

"If our families are not safe today, then no one's family will be safe tomorrow," he warned.

Expressing his frustration, Raza issued a strong statement: "Don't force us to consider other means, where people are armed."

Similarly, PTI's Seema Kanwal accused the police of intimidating their families and pressuring them to quit politics.

In response to the opposition's protest, Punjab Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman countered that PTI was now facing the same treatment it had once meted out to others.

As the opposition walked out, Deputy Speaker Zaheer Iqbal Channer urged lawmakers to hear the government's stance before taking such a step.

"As custodian of the House, I condemn any mistreatment of lawmakers' families," he said. Channer directed the minister for parliamentary affairs to form a committee to probe the matter and asked the Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) to investigate.

During the session, opposition lawmakers also criticised the Punjab cabinet's approval of Rs200 billion in supplementary grants for development projects, calling it a "robbery" of public funds.