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Imran plans to skip parliament until poll probe completes

Although the PTI chairman is still undecided about the legitimacy of the assembly, he is not going to stop party members from taking part in the ongoing budget debate, party insiders say.

islamabad — Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has once again decided to skip the National Assembly sessions until the judicial commission announces its decision on the rigging investigations into the 2013 general election.

Although the PTI chairman is still undecided about the legitimacy of the assembly, he is not going to stop party members from taking part in the ongoing budget debate, party insiders say.

In a related development just as the judicial commission seems to be on the verge of winding up the process of recording witnesses’ evidence, the PTI has identified more areas that need further investigations in order to establish that the 2013 general election was rigged.

In an application submitted by PTI counsel Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, the PTI said that the “inquisitorial” component of the proceedings warranted further inquiry so that the commission could fully discharge its statutory obligation under the presidential ordinance.

“Imran Khan’s aides had pushed him to take the decision (of returning to the assemblies) after the judicial commission was constituted, but he is still unconvinced,” a party leader told The Express Tribune newspaper.

In April, Imran’s party had ended its seven-month boycott of the National Assembly and provincial legislatures when the government accepted its demand for constituting an inquiry commission to investigate “systematic” rigging in the previous general election.

Imran attended a couple of legislative sessions before going on an unannounced boycott except for attending the joint assembly session addressed by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

news@khaleejtimes.com