LAHORE - Punjab Law and Cooperatives Minister Raja Basharat on Wednesday said that in the last two and a half years, the Punjab Assembly had passed 68 bills and made record legislation while implementing only 33 ordinances showing the best example of good governance. He was addressing a press conference with Special Assistant for Information Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan here on Wednesday.

He said the Chief Minister Punjab wanted to upgrade the outdated laws for the welfare of the people in the province so record legislation was made. “Past governments have not deliberately changed the laws of the nineteenth century, while we have updated the centuries-old laws of cooperatives and prisons and continue to do so,” he said.

Basharat said the government also had the full support of Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervez Elahi. The Law Minister said that the democratic thinking of the Speaker Punjab Assembly gave confidence to the government and that was why the Rules of Procedure had been amended. The Chairmen of the Standing Committees were not activated earlier but the Speaker helped make them active. He said that Punjab Local Government Act 2019 was brought and passed which was a manifestation of the vision of the Prime Minister and Chief Minister, he maintained. The government passed the Punjab Public-Private Act to give legal protection to investment, he said and added that effective legislation was also enacted with regard to FATF. “We ensured through amendments in the Sugar Act to bind sugar mills for timely commencement of sugarcane crushing and timely payment to the farmers,” adding that by passing the Ravi Development Act, the government had made important plans for Lahore.

Laws had also been passed for speedy disposal of cases, he added.

Basharat said that research centers were being set up in the Law department and Punjab Assembly for new legislation. The opposition had always put its own interests before the interests of the people and had not shown a positive attitude towards legislation, he asserted. He said the decision of Local Body elections was to be taken by the Election Commission. He said the court had banned rallies in view of the corona epidemic and the opposition should respect it and prove its national responsibility, he maintained.