PESHAWAR, Oct 23: Members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly offered prayers for the slain provincial law minister Israrullah Gandapur amid tears and sobs in the opening sitting of the extraordinary session of the House on Wednesday.

Colleagues from both the treasury and opposition parties, men and women, converged on Mr Gandapur`s front row seat in the provincial assembly to pay respects, place bouquets and wreaths on desk, lit candles in a steel tray close to his framed picture that was placed there by the assembly staff, and offered prayers for the departed soul.

Mufti Janan, a member of the opposition Jamiat Ulema-iIslam-Fazl, led the prayers in a puddle around the slain law minister`s seat in a pin drop silence as guests, government functionaries and others seated in the galleries also put their hands together in an upward position to say prayers.

An atmosphere of gloom and sadness prevailed right from the start of the sitting that has been requisitioned by 32 members of the joined opposition to remember and pay homage to Mr Gandapur who died in a targeted suicide bomb blast when he was meeting people in his Hurja to exchange Eid greetings at his native Kulachi town on Oct 16 last.

Members of the treasury and opposition parties stood in silence around Mr Gandapur`s seat amidst sobbing and gasping by a few. Several of the male and female members of the House were struggling alike to control their emotions, removing tears from their eyes. They stayed close to each other in a puddle for awhile, showing respect to their slain colleague and put up a combined display of gloom and sorrow.

`I have never seen such a scene here before,` remarked a member of the press gallery in a pensive mood and with misty eyes. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly has been through an identical situation more than once since its coming into being in May this year. A total of three MPAs of the sitting assembly have died in terrorist attacks during its short span of less than five months.

The last provincial assembly, too, lost three MPAs to acts of terrorism during its five year constitutional term.

However, Mr Gandapur`s death attracted emotions never witnessed before in the assembly. He was close to members of the both sides of the house. He joined Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf after winning the May 11 election, recording success from his native provincial assembly constituency for the third consecutive time. After the winning the election in 2002, he served as an opposition MPA in the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal led provincial government. In the last assembly, he was among a group of Pakistan People`s Party (Sherpao) who revolted and joined the treasury benches.

Perhaps, it was because of his strong bonds with members of the existing opposition parties that they appeared to be more saddened than many others sitting in the ruling alliance when the assembly met here on Wednesday to show respect for his role as a parliamentarian.

The assembly offered prayers for Mr Gandapur, twice in less than 20 minutes, after deputy speaker of the provincial assembly Imtiaz Shahid Qureshi, who was in the chair, requested Mufti Janan of JUI-F, to say prayers for the slain minister once more as the MPs returned to their respective seats after placing flowers on his desk.

Reading from a brief written statement with constant convulsive gasps, the deputy speaker termed Mr Gandapur`s loss a `national tragedy.

`Khyber Pakhtunkhwa could not celebrate Eid, every heart is burdened and eyes got full of tears (because of the deadly attack on Mr Gandapur),` said Mr Qureshi.

Remembering the slain leader, he paid tribute to him for his services a lawmaker and said that Mr Gandapur would always be remembered for his brilliant performance as the law minister.

PPP MPA Nighat Orakzai, when contacted, said the opposition requisitioned the session to `jolt the dead conscience of the ruling alliance ` She took exception to chief minister and ministers Shaukat Yousafzai and Shah Farman for staying away from the session.

Jamaat-i-Islami`s senior leader Sirajul Haq, the provincial finance minister, opposition leader Sardar Mehtab Abbasi of PML-N and parliamentary leader of JUI-F Maulana Lutfur Rehman were also absent.

The assembly will meet again on Thursday to hold formal discussion on Mr Gandapur`s assassination and the government`s response to his killing.