PTI to block constitutional package sans JUI-F support

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ISLAMABAD: As the PML-N-led coalition government remains hopeful of securing Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s support for its proposed constitutional amendment package, the PTI has vowed to block the move to pass the highly contentious bill in parliament, even if the JUI-F chief throws his support behind it.

The PTI claimed that all party parliamentarians were united in their stance, stating that not a single member would vote in favour of the constitutional package. “If Maulana Fazl joins the government, none of the PTI members will support it,” PTI’s newly appointed information secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram said on a private TV show.

Maulana Fazl, in a recent meeting with senior TV anchors, indicated his agreement on the formation of a constitutional court.

Sheikh Waqas accused the government of holding six PTI MNAs hostage during its unsuccessful attempt to pass the constitutional package in parliament on Sept 14, which coincided with the weekend holidays on Saturday and Sunday. “They have kept our six members hostage and pressured them to vote in favour of the proposed package,” he added.

“Now these MNAs have returned home and vowed to adhere to the party’s stance on the package,” he said.

Interestingly, none of the PTI members, who were reportedly held hostage, publicly complained about being confined at the Punjab House in the federal capital for two days, on Sept 14 and 15.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2024