KP Assembly Secretariat Makes Speaker’s Prior Permission Mandatory for Lawmaker Arrests; Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi Questions Legal Logic
PESHAWAR : The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly Secretariat has issued a directive to Inspector General (IG) of Police, which includes clear procedures for arrest or detention of provincial assembly members.In a significant administrative move the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly Secretariat has formally issued a directive to Inspector General (IG) of Police which includes clear procedures for arrest or detention of provincial assembly members.
“In so far as it is possible to do so without contravening the Assembly Powers, Immunities and Privileges Act, it has been decided to require that any Member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) be arrested and taken into custody only with the Speaker’s prior permission, even where such action is directed by an Executive Order,” the official statement said in reference to Assembly Powers, Immunities and Privileges Act, 2016 (Act 191 of 2016).
The following are the key provisions of the Assembly Secretariat Directive, which are available on the website:
Formal Application Required:Any magistrate or administrative authority who wishes to detain an MPA shall make a formal application to the Speaker, giving the reasons for the arrest.
Speaker’s Authority: Speaker has powers to seek police reports/ challan from the concerned police officers in the public interest as well as can order an inquiry into a matter before the submission of judicial challan.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s Sharp Rebuttal
Minister for Interior, Mohsin Naqvi, reacted strongly to the directive on social media, sharing a copy of the notification, and stating his dismay about the newly implemented procedural hurdle.
Pointing the legal questions, the Minister of the interior wondered: “If an MPA commits murder, what happens?” Will the police wait for the Speaker’s prior permission to arrest a killer?” It was an ‘unprecedented’ reading of equality before the law”, Naqvi said with a wry smile at the end of his statement. Is that the ‘Riyasat-e-Madina’ (State of Medina)?