PM Imran Khan knows about the 17 members who voted against govt in Senate polls: Rasheed

• Sheikh Rasheed says PM Imran Khan knows about the 17 members of the treasury benches who voted against govt in Senate polls.
• Says out of the 17 members, 13 took money from the Opposition and sold their votes.
• Condemned the clash between PTI workers and PML-N leaders.

ISLAMABAD: Minister of Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad on Monday claimed that there were 17 members of the treasury benches who voted against the government during the Senate elections, adding that Prime Minister Imran Khan knows their names.

In an interview with a private news channel, the interior minister claimed that, as expected, the buying and selling of votes took place before the Senate elections and out of the 17 members, 13 took money [from the Opposition] to vote against the government. 

Sheikh Rasheed also condemned the clash between the PTI workers and the PML-N leaders in Islamabad a few days ago.

While condemning the clash, Sheikh Rasheed added that PML-N workers should have held a press conference at a designated location [to avoid such untoward incidents].

The clash

As the government and its allied lawmakers gathered in the National Assembly on March 6 for a vote of confidence for Prime Minister Imran Khan, PTI workers present outside the National Assembly clashed with PML-N workers who had arrived there for a press conference.

As the PML-N leaders started to speak, they were surrounded by an angry crowd, which attempted to drown them out with slogans in support of the prime minister and the ruling party. 

Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Musaddiq Malik, Miftah Ismail, Ahsan Iqbal and Marriyum Aurangzeb criticised the PTI government and Prime Minister Imran Khan, calling him a 'fascist' and comparing him to Hitler.

Meanwhile, PTI supporters carrying pro-Imran banners circled the PML-N leaders and started raising slogans loudly in an attempt to suppress their voices.

The situation turned ugly when the politicians and the PTI supporters started pushing each other and exchanging hot words.

TV footage showed Musaddiq Malik being hit from behind, following which he and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi chased down the man who pushed them to deliver some retaliatory blows.

A Peshawari chappal was thrown at Ahsan Iqbal as he stood on a platform and shouted slogans criticising the government. Police, meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen.

Later, the PML-N leaders reassembled and blamed the government for the situation.