• Opposition seeks medical treatment, visitation rights for Imran Khan
• Treasury benches criticised for poor attendance in lower house
• Barrister Gohar alleges suppression of dissent, police excesses
ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Mehmood Khan Achakzai on Friday warned the government to meet their demands or be ready to face a complete boycott of the upcoming budget session.
“What will the budget session even look like without [participation of] the opposition. You can just pass it in two days [without any debate]; what will the international community think?” said Mr Achakzai while speaking on a point of order during the lacklustre proceedings on the last day of the session of the lower house of parliament.
The government plans to call the National Assembly session in the first half of June for the presentation of the federal budget.
“You will repent,” said Mr Achakzai, warning that the country would be engulfed by a massive opposition movement. He reiterated the opposition’s demands for medical treatment of incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan in a hospital of his choice and unrestricted visitation rights.
Pointing towards empty treasury benches, he said this showed the seriousness of the government in running the house. “If the PTI members leave this house, there will be no quorum,” he said.
Under the rules, the presence of one-fourth (86 lawmakers) of the total 332-member house is required to fulfil the condition of quorum for continuation of the proceedings.
“Through you Mr Speaker, I request [Prime Minister] Shehbaz Sharif; through you, I request my colleagues; make this parliament a source of power. Do not spoil it,” he said, declaring parliament as their “lifeline”.
“Parliament is our lifeline.
We are ready to provide you unconditional help for it [strengthening of parliament],” said Mr Achakzai,
who is also the president of the Pakhtoonkhwa Mili Awami Party and heads the Tehreek-i-Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan, an opposition alliance.
He said the press was facing curbs and the government was bent upon defacing the Constitution which, he said, the opposition would never allow to happen.
“Come and seek our help. Come to parliament and democracy,” he said, while naming Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who was present in the house.
Earlier at the outset of the sitting, NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had to suspend the proceedings for more than half an hour due to lack of quorum, pointed out by PTI’s Iqbal Afridi.
When the house resumed, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan took the floor and protested over the government’s alleged act of silencing the voices of dissent. He blasted the regime for “insulting” Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and Imran Khan’s sisters by police when they were heading to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi to meet the former prime minister.
“Our people are being picked up from their houses and we protest over continued excesses committed with the party,” he said.
After the question hour, Deputy Speaker Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah gave floor to some of the members to speak on points of order, before reading out president’s prorogation order.
Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2026
