Punjab PA passes resolution over Karachi deaths

LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly on Wednesday expressed profound grief over the loss of hundreds of human lives in Sindh due to the heatwave besides pressing the federal government to ensure uninterrupted power supply during Sehr and Iftar timings.
Through a resolution passed by the House amid a boycott by the opposition, the Punjab Assembly also lauded the efforts made by the federal government to overcome the energy crisis and address power shortages with the help of China.
The resolution was moved, out of turn, by Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan and was passed by the House without any opposition.Earlier, the opposition, led by its leader Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed, staged a boycott in protest against the bulldozing of rules and procedures by treasury over legislation concerning different bills, which were passed by the House.
The Punjab Assembly passed Punjab Infrastructure Development Cess Bill 2015, Provincial Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2015, the Stamp (Amendment) Bill 2015, Punjab Mass Transit Authority Bill 2015 and the Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan (Amendment) Bill 2015 with majority vote. During the clause by clause reading of the bills, the House once again witnessed disorder as members from both sides chanted slogans against leaders heading opponent parties.
In his speech before boycotting the proceedings, Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed said that ‘Dogra Raj’ seemed to be prevailing in Punjab. He said that on the basis of its numbers, the treasury was hurriedly doing legislation without allowing the elected members of the House to have their say over it.
He said the PML-N members had been made ‘hostage’ by an official who had been deployed at the exit point on the instruction of the chief minister to ensure presence of every MP in the House just to pass the bills, without even consulting them. He also said that in the Business Advisory Committee, the members must be intimated about legislation but the government hadn’t followed rules.
Mian Mehmood said that Finance Minister’s claim that poor hadn’t been taxed was contrary to the facts as no relief had been provided to them in the budget, rather, he said, their woes had been increased.
He said that poor growers had to face extra burden on their income while importing their products but no attention had been paid to address their grievances. Later, he announced to boycott the proceedings and the Opposition, while chanting ‘Go Nawaz Go’ slogans left the House.