LAHORE: The opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf boycotted the Punjab Assembly proceedings on Wednesday as a protest against what its leader said the attitude of the establishment.

`We are walking out of the house in protest against the establishment,` opposition leader Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar said.

Whenever police would raid our homes, they said that they had been sent by a sensitive agency, he added.

He said as the speaker and deputy speaker were helpless in resolving the issue, it was useless for the opposition to sit in the house.

Earlier, the opposition members protested in the house raising slogans for the release of the PTI founder. The PTIMPAs were also holding placards in their hands inscribed with the demand of releasing Imran Khan and declaring Feb 8 as the black day.

Mr Bhachar demanded that opposition lawmakers be given time to speak their mind on point of order about the police atrocities they faced on Feb 8, when they were to protest against alleged vote theft in the 2024 general election.

After half a dozen PTI MPAs had been given the floor one after another, the treasury members protested demanding that the ruling party legislators should also be allowed to respond to the opposition.

At this the opposition walked out of the house as Deputy Speaker Malik Zaheer Channar, who was holding the chair, regretted the attitude of the opposition. He said that the opposition shouldhave listened to the government`s stance.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mujtaba Shuja said that in fact May 9 was the black day in the country and not Feb 8, which was rather the day when the country resumed its journey on the path of development.

He said the government did not check any peaceful protest but the opposition had a track record ofviolence duringits protests.

However, Mr Channar said that as custodian of the house it is his responsibility to protect the opposition members too. Urging the minister to forget the past role of the opposition, he said the arrest of PTI MPA Shahid Raza`s children by the police deserved to be condemned. He directed the minister to form a probe committee and to bind the inspector-general of police to investigate the incident.