LAHORE: National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf on Saturday sworn in Pakistan Muslim League-N leader Hamza Shahbaz as Punjab chief minister at the Governor House in Lahore.
The oath-taking ceremony has taken place without consent and approval of Punjab Governor Omar Sarfaraz Cheema. The event was attended by key political personalities and federal ministers.
Federal Minister for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb said Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz had taken the oath. “Alhamdulillah, prison doors will be opened for only those who bully against the constitution, parliament and courts,” she said adding that they made fun of the law and constitution. She said it was possible to listen to a party but not thugs and violators of the constitution.
Meanwhile, the Punjab governor on Saturday rejected Usman Buzdar’s resignation and reinstated him and his cabinet after highlighting constitutional concerns.
Read more: Shahbaz Gill says procedure of Usman Buzdar’s resignation unconstitutional
The development came just hours after the Lahore High Court (LHC) issued an order instructing Pervaiz Ashraf to administer the oath to the PML-N leader.
Cheema rejected the resignation, claiming that it violated Article 130, Section 8, of the Constitution.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) leader Shahbaz Gill said since Usman Buzdar’s resignation was not according to the instructions inscribed in the constitution, therefore it was not accepted.
“It is clearly written in the constitution that the resignation of the chief minister will be handwritten and will be in the name of the governor. Usman Bazdar’s resignation was neither handwritten nor addressed to the governor,” Shahbaz Gill said in a tweet.
He said Punjab Governor Omar Sarfaraz Cheema sought a formal legal opinion from the Advocate General of Punjab on the issue and in the light of that he suspended the unconstitutional measure.
Read more: Buzdar is back again as CM Punjab
On April 29, Justice Jawad Hassan of Lahore High Court (LHC) had ordered the National Assembly speaker to administer oath to Chief Minister Punjab-elect Hamza Shehbaz at 11:30am on Saturday.
Earlier, the LHC had reserved verdict regarding the third time petition filed by Chief Minister Punjab-elect Hamza Shehbaz.
Hamza had approached the Lahore High Court (LHC) for the third time for his oath administration.
