Yusuf Raza Gilani, Syedal Khan Nasir elected Senate Chairman, Dupty Chairman uncontested

• Yusuf  Raza Gilani was elected as Senate Chairman.
• Sardar Syedal Khan Nasir was elected as Senate Deputy Chairman.
• The PTI leader Ali Zafar expressed disappointment that the Senate elections

Pakistan Peoples Party leader, Yusuf Raza Gilani, was elected as Senate Chairman while Sardar Syedal Khan Nasir of Muslim League (N) was elected as Senate Deputy Chairman uncontested after which they took oath of office.

Ishaq Dar, the Presiding Officer, led a Senate meeting where new senators were sworn in and votes were cast to choose the Senate’s Chairman and Deputy Chairman.

Gilani, who won a simple majority in the upper house, was elected as Senate Chairman and Syedal Khan Nasir as Deputy Chairman of Senate.

No other nominations were filed for the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Senate except from Yusuf Raza Geelani and Sardar Syedal Khan Nasir.

Dar announced the uncontested election of Gilani as Chairman of the Senate and administered the oath of office to him. Right after the other the newly elected Chairman Senate took his seat.

On the other hand, Syedal Khan Nasir also took the oath of the Deputy Chairman Senate, Chairman Senate took the oath of Syedal Khan.

The uncontested result of the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Senate was prepared by the Senate Secretariat, who also prepared a letter to the independent senators to sit in opposition benches.

Protest by PTI senators

Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf, right after the beginning of the Senate session, started protesting and raised slogans.

While speaking on the floor, PTI leader Senator Ali Zafar did not accepted the Senate elections, saying that the results should be deferred as the hose should consist of 96 members during the election as per Article 96 of the Constitution. He said that the process would be unconstitutional till the house is complete.

“We will not accept this illegal election till the senators from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are duly elected and are present here,” he insisted.

The PTI leader expressed disappointment that the Senate elections in Punjab didn’t include the reserved seats. He also stated that the selection process for the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the house is being made contentious.

“We wanted to participate in the election [of chairman and deputy chairman], however, we would not be part of it where it is ultra vires of the Constitution,” Senator Zafar added.

He criticized the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for its contentious decisions and suggested that the Senate session be postponed until senators from KP are elected.

Election of chairman without KP members is illegal, Mohsin Aziz

Senator Mohsin Aziz while speaking in the house said, “It is our duty to protect the upper house, today you have to think whether to save the state or politics, the election will be held tomorrow if not today.”

He further said that elections should be held in the presence of senators of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This province has played the role of shield for Pakistan. He added that without KPK the election of chairman and deputy chairman will be illegal.

Party Position in the Senate

It should be noted that currently there are 42 members in the Senate in which PTI is the largest party with 17 senators while PPK 10, (N) League 6, JUI (F) 3, Balochistan National Party one, MQM 2, (Q) League 1, Balochistan Awami Party 4, ANP 2 and 2 independent senators.

Later, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has decided to boycott the election of Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Senate as unconstitutional.

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