JUI-F lawmaker threatens to blow up assembly with a bomb, gets suspended

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ghani has suspended Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) MPA Hafiz Issamuddin and gotten him escorted out of the provincial house after the latter threatened to blow up the assembly with a bomb.

A resolution condemning the JUI-F leader’s statement was also passed by the KP Assembly, which was supported even by the Awami National Party (ANP) of the opposition, reports said.

Earlier, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and KP’s Labour Minister Shaukat Yousafzai had sought action against Issamuddin for his statement, complaining that the speaker had not taken any by himself.

“Why are [party] tickets awarded to people who threaten to target the house with suicide bombings if some issue stands unresolved?” he had asked.

While some of Issamuddin’s colleagues tried to defend his statement, saying that he was driven by emotions while speaking for his constituents and their problems, others resorted to protesting on the floor of the house and creating ruckus to stop the JUI-F leader from being escorted out of the assembly.

However, their attempts failed due to adjournment of the session that was later boycotted by the JUI-F.

Issamuddin was elected to the provincial house from PK-113 South Waziristan-I.