Absence of Army Chief and President Arif Alvi in Shahbaz Sharif's swearing in ceremony
.webp "Shahbaz Sharif's swearing in ceremony")
After weeks of uncertainty and political turmoil, the new Prime Minister has taken office. The swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif was held at the Presidency but President Arif Ali was not present at the ceremony.
Shortly before the ceremony began, a statement was issued by the Presidency stating that President Arif Alvi was unwell and his physician had advised him to rest for a few days. Therefore, Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjarani administered oath to Shahbaz Sharif.
However, due to the absence of another person at the event, many questions are being raised. Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa could not attend the ceremony.
According to some reports, he could not attend the ceremony due to ill health and a military spokesman did not deny or confirm this.
An hour and a half before the start of the ceremony, the arrival of guests had already begun. Seats were reserved for members of the Assembly, senators, diplomats and members of the media, while chairs were also provided for members' families and friends.
Almost all the PML-N members were present at the assembly function. When Maryam Nawaz arrived at the ceremony, she went to different seats and met everyone.
Similarly, when Maulana Fazlur Rehman came, Maryam Nawaz went to his seat to meet him. PPP's Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Yousuf Raza Gilani, Naveed Qamar, Sherry Rehman, Raja Pervez Ashraf and some other members of the assembly also attended the function while Asif Ali Zardari was not present.
Military leadership in the front row seats along with Capt. (R) Safdar, Maryam Nawaz, Hamza Shahbaz Sharif and his wife, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Yousuf Raza Gilani, Ayaz Sadiq and Raja Pervez Ashraf respectively. They were Brahmins.
The last guests to attend the ceremony included the Chiefs of Air Staff and Naval Staff. However, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa did not attend the ceremony which was noticed by all the guests present.
The Chief of Army Staff was represented by IG Arms Lieutenant General Salman Fayyaz Ghani. Apart from the Chiefs of Air Staff and Navy, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee also attended the swearing in ceremony.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif was dressed in a black sherwani and seriousness was evident on his face. Scenes from the swearing-in ceremony were also different from last year.
When Imran Khan took the oath, he had difficulty in reading Urdu. However, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif made a mistake only on one occasion when he proceeded by repeating the word constitution in compliance with the constitution and law.
On this occasion, the chairman of the senate stopped them and corrected them.
Imran Khan was clearly looking happy at last year's event and one of the highlights of the event was the meeting between Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and former Indian cricketer Nojat Singh Sindhu when he hugged the Army Chief.
The three military chiefs also met members of the assembly in the front seats and the atmosphere was pleasant throughout the ceremony. But today Shahbaz Sharif looked very serious and overall the atmosphere in the ceremony remained serious.
After the swearing in, PML-N supporters in the hall started chanting slogans. Slogans of both PPP and PML-N were heard at the function.
After the ceremony, politicians, media representatives and other guests met Maryam Nawaz, Yousuf Raza Gilani, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and other government members and took pictures with them.
At the time, many members were seen complaining that President Arif Alvi should have come to take the oath.
President Dr. Arif Alvi has complained of discomfort. The physician has examined him thoroughly and has advised him rest for a few days.
Some also said that the army chief had "convinced Shahbaz Sharif that he was still neutral".
After the ceremony, food was arranged for the guests, and shortly after, Shahbaz Sharif also entered the hall. Security personnel surrounded him.
On this occasion, the PML-N workers clashed with him to take pictures with him.
After much effort by the security staff, the workers finally formed a line and started meeting the Prime Minister and taking pictures with him. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also came in the hall on this occasion but Maulana Fazlur Rehman was not present.