Differences have emerged between Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati over whether the speaker should be informed before the arrest of provincial lawmakers in the province.

Mohsin Naqvi questioned whether police would have to wait for the speaker’s permission before arresting a member of the provincial assembly who is an accused in a criminal case.

The interior minister asked, “What kind of example of equality before the law is this? Is this the state of Madinah?”

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Responding to Naqvi’s statement, KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati said the protections enjoyed by lawmakers were not a new invention but part of parliamentary traditions and laws.

Swati said the privileges granted to lawmakers were meant to protect the independence of the legislature and shield elected representatives from pressure.

He said he had written to the Inspector General of Police and the Additional Chief Secretary in accordance with the law, asking that the speaker’s office be informed before the arrest of any member of the provincial assembly.