Zardari, Abbasi may not be able to attend joint parliament session on Kashmir

ISLAMABAD: Former president Asif Ali Zardari and former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi may not be able to attend a crucial joint session of parliament convened tomorrow to discuss the situation stemming from India’s doing away with held Kashmir’s special status.

Though National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser has issued production orders for both the parliamentarians to enable them to attend tomorrow’s session, but they have not get the nod from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman yet, ARY News reported, citing sources.

Both leaders will not be able to attend the parliamentary session if the NAB chairman does not give a go-ahead to execution of the production orders.

Ex-president Zardari and ex-PM Abbasi are in custody of the bureau on physical remand in different graft cases.

President Dr Arif Alvi summoned a joint session of parliament on Tuesday (tomorrow) following a rushed Indian presidential decree abrogated Article 370 of its Constitution earlier today.

The move of the BJP government strips off the Indian-occupied Kashmir from its special status.

As per details, the joint sitting will be held at 11 am tomorrow to deliberate upon the strained situation in the occupied Kashmir and along the Line of Control as at least 10,000 additional Indian troops were lately deployed in the disputed region.

Earlier today, India’s BJP government moved a bill in the upper house of the parliament (Rajaya Sabha) to remove Article 370 from the Indian constitution about the special status of Kashmir. Home Minister Amit Shah tabled the bill in the parliament amid opposition members’ protest. Later the bill was signed by the Indian President.