Speaker defends parliamentary privileges

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati, reacting to a statement by the federal interior minister, said parliamentary privileges of legislators were not a new invention but an established part of parliamentary traditions. He said the privilege requiring the speaker's permission before the arrest of a provincial assembly member was meant to protect the independence of the legislature and elected representatives, and did not place lawmakers above the law. "An accused member remains subject to investigation, legal proceedings and the judicial process," the speaker said, adding that the speaker's role was to ensure that arrests were not used as a tool of political victimisation. He said police should not be used to intimidate or silence elected representatives. "When the government legislates for itself, it is considered legitimate, but when the assembly does so, questions are raised," he remarked. Swati said the relevant law had been passed with the consensus of both treasury and opposition parties.