Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan finally accepted the resignations of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ministers on Tuesday, paving the way for them to sit on the opposition benches in the provincial assembly.
Those whose resignations were accepted included Rauf Siddiqui, the provincial minister for industries and commerce, and Dr Sagheer Ahmed, Sindh's health minister. The resignations of MQM advisors and special assistants, including the advisor for youth affairs Faisal Subzwari, advisor for sports Adil Siddiqui and special assistant to the chief minister on Auqaf Abdul Haseeb, had already been accepted by Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah on October 26 after their persistent demands.
These recent developments came to the fore after the MQM parted ways with the Sindh government on October 19. The ministers and advisors belonging to the party resigned on October 20 following remarks against the term 'Muhajir' and MQM chief Altaf Hussain by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and leader Khursheed Shah. "Given the situation, we cannot rejoin the government," said Faisal Subzwari to the media. "MQM will now play the role of strong opposition in Sindh."
Sources within the party said that after getting seats on the opposition benches, MQM would submit an application seeking the position of the opposition leader of the house. This slot is currently held by Shaharyar Mahar of Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F).
Published in The Express Tribune, October 29th, 2014.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ