According to The Express Tribune, the Peshawar High Court on Wednesday restrained police from arresting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker Suraiya Bibi under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance and suspended the administration's notification sealing her official residence.
A raid after Governor's Rule
A two-member bench of Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Muhammad Fahim Wali heard the deputy speaker's writ petition. Her lawyer, Yasar Khattak, told the court she was allotted the residence in 2024 as deputy speaker. After emergency and Governor's Rule were imposed in the province on October 11, police raided the house on October 14 and sealed it, an action he called illegal.
'Office continues until a new assembly'
Khattak argued that even under emergency and Governor's Rule the deputy speaker's residence could not be sealed without meeting legal requirements, and described the moves as political victimisation. He said the speaker and deputy speaker hold their constitutional offices until a new assembly is formed, so action against them is unconstitutional and unlawful.
Chief secretary and IG asked to respond
After hearing arguments, the bench stayed her arrest under 3-MPO and suspended the sealing notification pending further proceedings. The court issued notices to the chief secretary, the inspector general of police and other authorities, directing them to file replies by the next hearing.