PTI leaders demand elections date after acceptance of their MNAs resignations

ISLAMABAD: PTI leaders today demanded of the coalition government to announce general elections as NA Speaker accepted resignations of 35 more PTI MNAs on Friday.

On Friday, Speaker of the National Assembly accepted the resignations of 35 more PTI MNAs with the aim to foil Imran Khan’s bid to test Prime Minster Shehbaz Sharif through a vote of confidence.

NA Speaker accepted resignations of a total of 70 MNAs this week. Except one MNA Sheikh Rashid, all the other lawmakers belong to the PTI.

Raja Pervez Ashraf made this surgical strike a few days after Imran Khan announced to return to the National Assembly and to test strength of PM Shehbaz Sharif through no-trust move.

Several PTI leaders, speaking outside the Parliament House, demanded early polls in the country. 

The PTI leaders strongly condemned NA Speaker’s decision of accepting PTI MNAs resignations when they decided to sit in the Parliament.

Last week NA Speaker accepted resignations of 34 PTI MNAs and one resignation of Sheikh Rashid, chief of Awami Muslim League.

As the NA Speaker accepted resignations of another 35 MNAs of PTI, total number of resignations, so far, has increased to 80 _ 79 PTI MNAs and one Awami Muslim League MNA.

Resignations of Maleeka Ali Bokhari, Andaleeb Abbas, Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Syed Fakhr Imam and others have been accepted.

Now, after the acceptance of 80 resignations since July, the strength of PTI MNAs in the assembly has shrunk to 73 including the dissidents.

About 131 MNAs belonging to the PTI tendered their resignations en masse after Imran Khan’s government was ousted through a no-confidence motion in April last year.

NA speaker on July 28, 2022 accepted the resignations of only 11 PTI lawmakers while he accepted 34 more resignations on January 17.  Below are the names of PTI MNAs, who are no more MNAs.