LAHORE - The Opposition staged a token walkout yesterday from the Punjab Assembly session against the killing of three PIA workers during the protest regarding privatisation of the national airline.
Punjab Assembly’s Wednesday session was started with a delay of one hour to its scheduled time at 10am.
The house adopted question hour on Agriculture and Youth Affairs & Sports Departments and Archeology &Tourism. Provincial ministers Dr Farukh and Rana Mashhood answered queries related to their ministries.
The Opposition parties including PTI, PML-Q, PPP and JI staged the token walkout for half an hour and later joined the proceedings on the request of the chair and took part in the proceedings during which four bills were considered and passed.
Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed before leading the walkout demanded an inquiry against the responsible for the incident. He also demanded an out of turn condemnation resolution against the killing of the PIA workers.
They came out of the house and chanted slogans against the privatisation of state organisations by staging a sit-in at the stairs of the provincial assembly and killing of the PIA workers who made an effort to stop the government for doing injustice to them and the national airline.
“The government should immediately withdraw its decision of privatising the national airline,” demanded the opposition.
“The federal government is responsible for the killing of three PIA workers in Karachi. Such tactics can derail the process of democracy,” warned Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed while delivering a speech.
The house adopted four bills while a bill regarding animal slaughtering control was introduced during the Wednesday sitting.
Punjab Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah tabled all the bills. However no amendment proposed by the Opposition in the bills was entertained by the house.
The bills included Punjab Revenue Authority (Amendment) Bill 2015, Infrastructure Development Authority of the Punjab Bill 2015, Punjab Food Authority (Amendment) Bill 2015 and Punjab Pure Food (Amendment) Bill 2015.
Treasury member Sheikh Allauddin moved an interesting adjournment motion demanding of the government to fix 20 to 25 percent quota in medical colleges and hospitals for eunuchs.
Parliamentary Secretary Nazar Gondal replying to the motion informed the house that there was open merit for eunuchs on all post in the hospitals and medical colleges.
The eligible eunuchs can get equal opportunities in jobs as compare to other citizens, he added.
Later, Deputy Speaker Sher Ali Gorchani who is chairing the session adjourned the sitting till 10 am Thursday.
SCBA president condemns PIA workers’ death: Supreme Court Bar Association president Syed Ali Zafar has expressed sorrow over the death of three employees of the Pakistan International Airline in Karachi.
In a statement issued yesterday, the SCBA president demanded of the government to immediate constitute an inquiry commission to bring the culprits to justice.
Mr Zafar offered condolences to the grieving families of the victims.
He felt the government must arrive at a consensus with all the stakeholders to resolve the issue of privatisation of PIA because too much agitation had been witnessed in the country for too long.
The lawyer also expressed his concern over the shootings in peaceful protests, saying anyone who violates the laws and disrupts peace in the country should be brought to justice.