Islamabad: The memberships of 159 lawmakers from the Senate, National Assembly, and provincial assemblies have been suspended, and they have been barred from entering Parliament for failing to submit their financial statements as required under the Election Act.
According to official details, the suspended members include 32 from the National Assembly, 50 from the Punjab Assembly, 33 from the Sindh Assembly, 28 from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, seven from the Balochistan Assembly, and nine from the Senate.
Among those whose memberships have been suspended are Federal Minister Musadik Malik, MQM-P leader Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Arshad Vohra, BNP chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Syed Abdul Qadir Gilani, Ali Musa Gilani, former federal minister Saira Afzal Tarar, and Meherin Razaq Bhutto. Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat is also among the suspended members.
From the Senate, the memberships of Fauzia Arshad, Abid Sher Ali, Murad Saeed, and former federal minister Noor-ul-Haq Qadri have also been suspended.
Authorities clarified that the suspended lawmakers will not be allowed to participate in any proceedings of the National Assembly, Senate, or provincial assemblies until their memberships are restored. Under the Election Act, all members of assemblies are required to submit their statements of assets and liabilities by January 15 each year.
Meanwhile, Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq barred 32 MNAs from entering the House for failing to submit their asset details to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The Speaker directed that members who have not fulfilled the legal requirement should not be allowed to mark their attendance.
Addressing the House, the Speaker said that one such member was still present in the chamber and should leave voluntarily. He added that the complete list of suspended members was available and advised lawmakers to check their names themselves.
The Election Commission has reiterated that compliance with asset declaration laws is mandatory and that memberships will only be restored once the required financial statements are submitted.
