As PTI MNAs get accused of drawing salaries despite resigning from the National Assembly, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry has advised the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) to verify the news coming in from the media.
Taking to Twitter, the former Federal Minister said the claims of resigned PTI MNAs drawing salaries were another lie from the government. Fawad Chaudhry said that the salaries have been suspended and no member is receiving them.
Fawad Chaudhry also revealed that the PTI lawmakers are again writing a letter to the Speaker of the Assembly to confirm their resignations.
Read more: PTI resignations suspicious: IHC
“Yesterday in the Supreme Court it was said that PTI members of the assembly are not coming but they are getting salary, the judges should first verify every news coming from the media. The fact is that it was another government lie. Salaries are suspended and no member is getting a salary,” Fawad Chaudhry said.
“A letter is being written to the Speaker today and he has been asked to tell the time when the members of the assembly can come to confirm their resignations so that a new election process can be started,” Fawad Chaudhry further added.
آج اسپیکر کو خط لکھا جا رہا ہے اور کہا ہے کہ وقت بتائیں کب ممبران اسمبلی اپنے استعفوں کی تصدیق کیلئے ایک بار پھر آپ کے پاس آئیں تا کہ نیا انتخابی عمل شروع کیا جا سکے
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) December 15, 2022
On Wednesday the Supreme Court heard a petition filed by PTI Chairman Imran Khan, challenging changes to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) law. During the hearing, Supreme Court judge Mansoor Ali Shah on Wednesday said the apex court could intervene to get the resignations of the PTI members from the National Assembly accepted within a few days.
Justice Shah said he was baffled that PTI members, whose resignations have yet to be accepted by the NA speaker, were drawing salaries but not holding their seats in the lower house.
Issue of PTI MNAs’ resignations
The PTI, which saw the ouster of its chief Imran Khan as the premier through a no-confidence vote in April, had announced it was resigning en masse from the NA just hours before then-opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif was to take oath as the country’s new chief executive.
Then-NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri, in the capacity of the house’s acting speaker, had subsequently accepted the resignations of 123 PTI MNAs. However, the incumbent speaker later decided to verify the resignations and eventually accepted the resignations of just 11 lawmakers on July 27.
Read more: PTI leader challenges NA resignation in IHC
Since then, PTI has been challenging the issue in the courts and demanding that their lawmakers’ resignations be accepted. However, amid all this, the government has accused PTI lawmakers of still drawing their salaries. For instance, Federal minister and PML-N leader Khawaja Saad Rafique said on Wednesday that the PTI lawmakers were avoiding the legislation process in the National Assembly despite having all perks and privileges.