Ruckus mars Sindh Assembly session.

Byline: MUHAMMAD SABIH

Karachi -- Sindh Assembly session on Monday was once again marred by hooliganism of lawmakers belonging to Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) who kept chanting slogans against each others' party leadership for 'harbouring' corruption.

It all started when Sharjeel Inam Memon, who was presiding over the proceedings as a chairman, didn't initially allow PTI member Arsalan Taj Hussain to make a speech on his calling-attention notice regarding reappointment of government officers involved in plea bargain or voluntarily return.

'As per rules, you can just read out your calling-attention notice but a speech cannot be made,' Memon told to PTI lawmaker.

Arsalan said that every member used to make a speech on his calling-attention notice. 'As per practice of the assembly in last two and a half years, since we were elected as MPAs, a member moving calling-attention notice is allowed to make a speech,' he insisted.

Visibly irked chairman said that he cannot change the rules as 'this assembly strictly follows the rules'. However, on intervention of other PTI members, the chair allowed Arsalan to speak who came down hard on Chief Minister (CM) Syed Murad Ali Shah for appointing a person 'who had voluntarily returned Rs12 million to National Accountability Bureau (NAB)' as finance secretary.

He asked the government as to what action was taken against the officers who were involved in plea bargain or voluntarily return.

'They (government officers) had made plea bargain which shows that they were involved in misappropriation. The CM who also holds finance portfolio had appointed a man who had voluntarily returned Rs12 million in 2016 as the finance secretary,' he added.

The PTI lawmaker was of the view that these 'blue-eyed' officers work as frontman for the government.

Hitting back at the PPP, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mukesh Kumar Chawla asked the federal government to arrest 'Cheeni Chor' (sugar thief) without mentioning the thief's name. 'Everybody knows who are giving shelter to Cheeni Chor and who are the people he works as frontman for,' said Chawla.

During the heated debate between Arsalan and Chawla, other legislatures of PPP and PTI also kept chanting slogans against each others' leadership. The chairman tried to keep the members quite but no avail.

'Don't behave like this. It not a container or D-Chowk but Sindh Assembly which had passed Pakistan's...