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PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry Fails to Attend Senate Session Despite Production Order
PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry misses Senate session despite Chairman Gillani's production order. Opposition criticizes Punjab govt for denying attendance facilitation.
ND
by News Desk
2025-01-14
PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry Fails to Attend Senate Session Despite Production Order

PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry failed to appear in the Senate session on Tuesday, despite a production order issued by Chairman Yousaf Raza Gillani the day before. Chaudhry, who is currently imprisoned in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat Jail, has previously faced similar issues with production orders. A similar order was issued in March of last year, but the senator was unable to attend the session.

Chaudhry, along with 21 other PTI figures, was formally indicted in November 2023 by a Lahore Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in connection with cases stemming from the countrywide riots on May 9, 2023. These cases were registered at the Racecourse and Sarwar Road police stations.

The absence of Chaudhry in the Senate was met with strong disapproval from opposition lawmakers. Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Shibli Faraz, expressed his disappointment, stating, “We are greatly saddened as colleagues of a senator of this house who has been incarcerated for the last 1.5 years in a Lahore jail.”

Opposition senators carried placards bearing the image of the missing senator during the session, highlighting the issue. Faraz thanked the Speaker for issuing the production order, but criticized the Punjab government for failing to facilitate Chaudhry’s attendance, suggesting that the government’s concerns about security were merely an excuse.

“The explanation provided by the Punjab government is regrettable. It is Chaudhry’s legal, constitutional, and democratic right to attend the Senate session,” Faraz asserted. He emphasized that the Senate was the rightful place for every senator to participate, and lamented that the custodian of the house had not ensured Chaudhry’s presence.

Faraz urged his fellow senators to unite and protest against what he called a blatant disregard for parliamentary respect and the rights of elected representatives. “We must stand as one to protest the lack of respect shown to the parliament,” he said.

The continued absence of Chaudhry from the Senate raises questions about the political environment in Pakistan and the use of incarceration as a tool to stifle dissent. As the situation unfolds, the opposition’s push for Chaudhry’s rights to be upheld will likely remain a significant point of contention.
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