The second session of negotiations between the opposition and the ruling coalition on the disqualification reference against 26 PTI lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly is set to take place today (Sunday).

Punjab Assembly Speaker, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, will chair the session, which is scheduled for 4 PM at the Punjab Assembly. However, the opposition has yet to submit names for its negotiation committee to the assembly secretariat.

According to sources, if the talks are successful, the government may consider withdrawing the disqualification references against the suspended members.

Meanwhile, the government has already notified its negotiation committee to handle the matter.

The committee includes Finance Minister Mujtaba Shuja ur Rehman, Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique, Samiullah Khan, Rana Muhammad Arshad, and Industries Minister Chaudhry Shafay Hussain.

Other members of the ruling committee include Syed Ali Haider Gilani, Chaudhry Iftikhar Chhachhar, Raheela Khadim Hussain, Amjad Ali Javed, Ahmad Iqbal, and Shoaib Siddiqui. 

26 suspended opposition members of the Punjab Assembly held a detailed meeting on Friday where Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan and agreed to continue talks in the coming days.

The meeting, which lasted for over an hour, focused on various key issues and saw participation from both sides in a bid to break the ice.

The delegation was led by Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar.

On the government’s side, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman, Chief Whip Rana Muhammad Arshad, and other senior leaders were also present to assist the Speaker during the discussion.

Both parties reached a consensus to keep the dialogue going, with the second round of talks scheduled for Sunday.

It is noteworthy that, Speaker of the Punjab Assembly, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, suspended 26 members of the assembly for 15 sessions over serious violations of parliamentary rules on June 28.

The suspended lawmakers, mostly from the opposition, were accused of disorderly behavior in the house, including tearing agenda papers, chanting slogans, and disrupting proceedings. The action was taken under Rule 210 of the assembly regulations.

The Speaker emphasised that the sanctity and order of the house must be upheld at all costs.