Gillani assumes office of leader of house in Senate today

• First session of upper house since change of government commences today.
• Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif designates Yousaf Raza Gillani as leader of House in Senate.
• Ex-leader of house Shehzad Waseem to become leader of Opposition in Senate.

ISLAMABAD: PPP stalwart Yousaf Raza Gillani will take charge as the leader of the House in the Senate today (Monday) with the commencement of the first session of the upper house under the incumbent government, The News reported.

Gillani, who served as the leader of the Opposition in the Senate in the PTI government, has been appointed to fill the slot by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Now, Senator Dr Shehzad Waseem, the leader of the House during the PTI government, will become the leader of the Opposition, for which the Senate chairman has issued an official notification.

Earlier, former premier Gillani contested for the slot of Senate chairman against Sadiq Sanjrani, who currently serves this post, but his seven votes had been discarded by the then chairman, an appointee of President Arif Alvi.

Gillani is currently fighting his case against the result of the election of the Senate chairman in the superior courts.

Senate is in its 20th parliamentary year and its 318th session is taking place in a tense political situation, and it is likely that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is the leader of the House in both houses of Parliament, would make his maiden appearance during its upcoming session.

Well-placed sources told The News that PM Shehbaz Sharif will avail the sitting of the upper house to make an important policy statement on the political and economic situation in the country.

The ongoing session of the National Assembly will also resume today and it has been indicated that a resolution of condemnation against PTI Chairman Imran Khan for using obnoxious language against Maryam Nawaz in his Multan rally would be tabled in the two houses separately by women lawmakers.

Imran Khan's reckless language in public meetings will also figure in discussions. The National Assembly will likely adopt the resolution without much resistance in the absence of PTI members as it had already passed a resolution against him and President Alvi separately for flouting the Constitution.

It has been indicated that the PTI may resist the resolution as its members will be present in the House. A heated discussion couldn’t be ruled out in the upper house on the occasion, the sources said.

The two houses will also discuss the political and economic situation prevailing in the country. The NA session will be conducted by acting Speaker Zahid Akram Khan Durrani in the absence of Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, who is on an official foreign trip, the sources added.

The Senate Secretariat didn’t issue an agenda for the first day of the sitting, while the NA Secretariat issued its agenda a day earlier.