ISLAMABAD – The Islamabad High Court has dismissed Shireen Mazari’s petition seeking disqualification of Defence Minister Khawaja Asif over his remarks during a National Assembly session in June.
During a debate in the House on June 8, Khawaja Asif had pointed towards Mazari and said, “someone make this tractor trolley keep quiet.” The minister then went on to ask the PTI leader to transform her “masculine voice into a more feminine one.”
IHC Justice Athar Minallah dismissed the petition as non-maintainable after hearing arguments from Mazari’s counsel Barrister Shoaib Razzaq. The court had directed Mazari’s counsel to argue over how a matter related to National Assembly proceedings could be taken up by the court.
In his remarks, Justice Minallah asked if the PTI, being one of the largest political parties, took any action following the incident. Did the party make any efforts to table a bill in this regard, he said, adding if the petitioner had approached police for the registration of a case against Asif.
Earlier, Shireen Mazari had requested the court to direct the National Assembly speaker to initiate disciplinary action and refer the matter to the Election Commission of Pakistan to disqualify the minister.
The law ministry, National Assembly speaker, federal minister for parliamentary affairs and Asif were cited as respondents in the petition.
Mazari’s counsel stressed that the remarks were duly televised and watched around the globe by millions and remained available on social media, the Express Tribune reported.
Asif had verbally harassed Mazari which created a hostile working environment for her and thus comes under The Protection Against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act, 2010, the counsel argued.
