Group led by Fatyana takes on Faisal Hayat: 8 MNAs boycott meeting
** By Ahmed Hassan**
ISLAMABAD, April 17: Eight members of a dissident group in the Pakistan Muslim League-Q walked out of a parliamentary party meeting in protest against former minister Faisal Saleh Hayat being in the chair.
The dissidents had gathered at the residence of Riaz Fatyana on Tuesday and decided to form a group of ‘likeminded’ lawmakers from the four provinces in the National Assembly and to play their role of the ‘real’ opposition.
MNA Chaudhry Wajahat Hussain had earlier dismissed reports about formation of the group and announced that the issue would be settled in Thursday’s parliamentary party meeting.
PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain is abroad for medial check-up.
The group led by Mr Fatyana and Kashmala Tariq objected to Mr Hayat presiding over the meeting. Mr Hayat had been appointed the PML-Q parliamentary leader by Chaudhry Shujaat.
Sources said Ms Tariq exchanged harsh words with Mr Hayat.
Talking to newsmen after the walkout, she said her group comprised more than 30 lawmakers who rejected Mr Hayat as the parliamentary party leader. She said the number of dissidents would increase if the party leadership ignored their protest.
She said the group would elect its own parliamentary leader soon.
The MNAs who walked out of the meeting included Nasrullah Bijarani, Noman Langrial and Israr Tareen. Ms Tariq said eight MNAs had walked out.
Mr Hayat said: “The party leaders have picked me for the position of parliamentary leader and I am chairing the meeting in that capacity.”
Ms Tariq and her supporters demanded that the former PPP Patriots minister present a party notification about his appointment.
She told newsmen that the main grievance of her group was that the party had ignored the smaller provinces and given the posts of the leader of the opposition, parliamentary leader and chief whip to lawmakers from Punjab. She alleged that a ‘gang of four’ — former PPP Patriots members Riaz Pirzada, Mr Hayat, Sheikh Waqas and Raza Hayat Harraj — had been imposed on the party.
She claimed that her group also had the support of 26 members of the Punjab assembly.
Mr Fatyana said the party leadership had abandoned the role of opposition, which was evident from the fact that the opposition had only two items on the agenda for the private members’ day on Tuesday.
http://www.dawn.com/2008/04/18/nat1.htm
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