Opposition criticised for violating decorum of Sindh Assembly

The Sindh Assembly on Tuesday witnessed serious commotion as the opposition legislators resorted to a vociferous protest because they were denied an opportunity to raise the issue of the recent death of a minor boy who had fell into an uncovered manhole in Karachi.

Some of the protesting opposition lawmakers had brought manhole covers with them. A few of the opposition legislators also walked out of the House in protest against the decision of the chair for not granting them an opportunity to speak before the legislature.

Members of the provincial assembly belonging to the opposition parties in Sindh, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), had resorted to protest in the House.

MQM lawmaker Muhammad Hussain Khan lamented the situation that the opposition legislators were being denied the opportunity to speak in the House in negation of the understanding reached in the meeting held earlier between the lawmakers concerned and the PA speaker.

The legislature later also unanimously adopted a resolution to pay homage to the renowned Sufi poet of Sindh, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, in connection with his annual Urs. Sindh Culture Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah said the opposition in the House had intended to do politics on manhole covers. He said the opposition lawmakers had brought manhole covers inside the august house on the eve of the Urs of Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai.

PA Deputy Speaker Rehana Laghari, who was chairing the session, said that it seemed that the opposition legislators required training about the rules and regulations of the assembly. MQM legislator Khan recalled that every year the House unanimously passed the resolution to pay homage to Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai because no one in the PA should claim that the great Sufi poet belonged to him, since Bhittai belonged to everyone.

PTI lawmaker Firdous Shamim Naqvi requested the Sindh government to get the poetic works of Bhittai translated into English. The culture minister lamented the situation that the opposition had resorted to protest in the House when it took up a resolution to pay tribute to Bhittai.

Shah said the opposition’s conduct in the House gave the impression that it was oblivious of the mystic and poetic services of Bhittai. He added that the poetry of Bhittai was available in English and Urdu, while efforts were under way to get the literary works translated into Chinese.

He said the Sindh government had been making efforts to formally get the poetry of Bhittai declared an inviolable cultural heritage of the region. He added that whoever did research work on Bhittai’s poetry was honoured with the Latif Award.

Parliamentary Secretary for Auqaf in the PA Heer Soho said that the Sindh Auqaf Department had made arrangements for Bhittai’s annual Urs, while work was also being carried out to

upgrade the shrine of the Sufi poet.