Shah Mehmood defends PTI actions in speech to Parliament

PM Nawaz left Parliament just as Qureshi was about to speak and returned shortly after it was finished

KARACHI: Following up on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan's announcement yesterday, PTI leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi spoke emphatically in defence of his party's actions during the protests, saying, "We are protesting to save Parliament, not to destroy it.” 

Despite all PTI lawmakers having handed their resignations to National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq weeks ago and the fact that they had not yet been accepted, allowed  PTI lawmakers to attend the joint session "one last time," according to Imran in an announcement on Tuesday.

Still, Qureshi was conspicuously silent over the status of his and other PTI lawmakers' resignations in his speech. Earlier on Saturday, dissident PTI leader Javed Hashmi claimed that "no lawmaker was happy" to submit their resignations. The claim was neither refuted nor accepted by Qureshi.

"This Parliament is my political Ka'aba," Qureshi said. "I told [Pakistan Awami Tehreek leader Tahirul] Qadri's supporters not move towards it."

At the same time, Qureshi seemed to deny responsibility for the actions of PTI's supporters. "I do not command them. I do not lead them. I can request them," he said.

Qureshi's statement was presumably in response to criticism lodged against both the PTI and the PAT for the attack on Pakistan Television's Headquarters yesterday -- an attack that the leaders of both parties denied was ordered by them.

Most of Qureshi's speech was spent on the defensive, in which he moved to refute many allegations lodged against the PTI over the past few days, particularly by his own party president Javed Hashmi.

“The PTI never was and never will be part of a grand plan that will undermine democracy,” Qureshi clarified, evidently in response to Hashmi's claim that the protests were 'scripted'.

Qureshi moved to defend PTI's protests, which began on August 14th, and became violent on Saturday after PTI workers allegedly moved to occupy the Prime Minister House.

“I want to be on record; my party opposes the invoking of Article 245,” says Qureshi.

“We embarked on this journey after agreeing on four points,” Qureshi said. “Our points were that 1) our struggle will be democratic 2) [It will be] within the realm of the Constitution 3) our movement will be peaceful and 4) if any extra-constitutional  action is taken - I am referring to martial law -- we will condemn it and oppose it.”

Qureshi quoted the right to assembly from the Constitution, saying that it was their constitutional right to peaceful protest. He repeated Imran's claim that "not even a flowerpot was broken during the protests" to much derision from the rest of the lawmakers attending.

“The PTI throughout the march has stayed within the law, I can speak for my party,” he says.

Earlier, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif left Parliament just as Qureshi was about to speak. He returned shortly after Qureshi finished.

Qureshi spent the rest of his speech reiterating his party's official line: the claim that there was widespread rigging in last year's general elections; PTI's demand for the prime minister's resignation; justice for the Model Town violence in which 14 PAT workers were killed; and a call to for an equitable solution to the current political impasse.

‘This is a deadlock, where do we go from here?” asks Qureshi. “We are here today because of the impasse,” he adds.

“We are going to meet the political jirga at 4pm today,” he says, adding that the talks must lead to positive results or someone might try to sabotage them.

Qureshi scheduled another public announcement for later today. “At 4pm today, we will present our point of view,” he announced.

As Qureshi concluded his address, NA speaker summoned him in his chamber. PTI MNAs walked out of Parliament to shouts from pro-government lawmakers. “They will not resign,” lawmakers chanted.