PTI lawmakers continue using official vehicles despite resigning from national assembly standing committees

Several Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers are reportedly continuing to use official government vehicles and other privileges despite submitting their resignations from National Assembly standing committees, according to parliamentary sources.

The issue has sparked questions about whether lawmakers who have stepped down from committee leadership positions should continue to receive official benefits while their resignations remain pending.

Sources said that a number of PTI members are still availing themselves of facilities that were granted to them in their capacity as chairpersons of parliamentary standing committees. These benefits reportedly include the use of official government vehicles as well as a monthly fuel allocation of 320 liters of petrol.

In addition to transportation benefits, committee chairpersons are also provided with official staff to assist them in carrying out their parliamentary responsibilities. According to the sources, these facilities include the services of a driver, a personal assistant (PA), and a support staff member, commonly referred to as a naib qasid (office attendant).

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, along with its allied Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), currently holds the chairmanship of eight National Assembly standing committees Several PTI lawmakers, including Muhammad Atif, Junaid Akbar, Khawaja Shiraz, and Amir Dogar, had been granted official vehicles and related privileges during their tenure as committee chairpersons.

The controversy gained further attention when PTI lawmaker Sanaullah Masti Khel arrived at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad in an official government vehicle. During his arrival, journalists questioned why he was still using the vehicle and enjoying official privileges despite having announced his resignation from the standing committees.

Responding to the questions, Masti Khel said he had already attempted to return the official vehicle but claimed that the National Assembly Speaker had declined to accept it.

According to the PTI lawmaker, the Speaker informed him that the vehicle could not be taken back until the resignations from the parliamentary committees were formally accepted and processed. Masti Khel maintained that since the resignations had not yet been approved through the required parliamentary procedure, the official facilities technically remained in effect.

He further emphasized that PTI members were acting in accordance with the instructions of the party’s founding leader. Masti Khel said the party remained committed to following the directives issued by its leadership and that its primary focus was on efforts related to securing the release of the PTI founder.

“We follow the instructions of our party founder,” he said, adding that privileges and official benefits were not important to the party members. According to him, the lawmakers’ priority is their political struggle rather than the perks associated with parliamentary offices.

Masti Khel also stated that PTI members had resigned from the standing committees as part of the party’s political strategy and that fellow party workers and leaders continued to stand together despite facing political and legal challenges.

The matter has drawn attention to parliamentary procedures governing resignations from committee positions and the continuation of official privileges during the period between the submission and formal acceptance of resignations. Until the resignations are officially approved, questions remain over whether committee chairpersons should continue using government resources or whether such benefits should be suspended immediately.

The issue is likely to remain under discussion as Parliament decides on the pending resignations and the status of the associated official facilities.