LAHORE - Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari has constituted a seven member committee headed by Law Minister Raja Basharat for preparing draft legislation enabling Speaker to issue production order of legislators facing cases in court of law.
Chairing Punjab Assembly session on Friday, he pended queries relating to Food Department due to absence of Minister Samiullah Khan.
Expressing displeasure over absence of a minister during Question Hour relating to his department, he said that it was the third such incident. The House passed two resolutions out of turn, one relating to observing December 16 National Day against terrorism and extremism and the second appreciating the government for diplomatic success of excluding Pakistan for the list of countries where minorities were not protected.
The session started one hour beyond the scheduled time with Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari in the chair.
Following the last day development relating to production order, Deputy Speaker constituted a house committee headed by law minister for proposing a draft law. Raja Basharat will head the committee having representation from both sides of the political divide. Three members will be from the ruling PTI including the law minister, two from PML-N, one from the PPP while the seventh member will be Maulana Moawiya Tariq.
During Question Hour on Population Welfare, Food, Labour and Human Resource departments, the chair expressing displeasure over absence of Minister Samiullah Khan. He pended queries relating to the Food Department. He said that it was the third incident of absence of a minister during Question Hour relating to his department.
Minister for Industries, Commerce and Investment Mian Aslam Iqbal said that the minister for Food could not come to the House due to ailment of his father.
Later, PML-N’s Hina Pervaiz Butt presented an out of turn resolution that demanded observing December 16, the day when terrorists hit Army Public School Peshawar four years back, as National Day against terrorism and extremism. Condemning the attack, the resolution expressed solidarity with the families of martyred students and paid tributes to martyrs of security agencies. It urged the nation to pledge for fighting against terrorism and extremism till complete eradication of the menace and restoration of peace in the country. The House unanimously passed the resolution.
Treasury legislator Uzma Kardar moved a resolution congratulating the federal government for successful diplomacy that paved way for exclusion of Pakistan from the list of countries persecuting the religious minorities. The resolution said that National Commission for Human Rights was a vibrant body and Pakistan protects all rights of minorities.
Opposing the resolution, PML-N’s Azma Bokhari said that it was not a success of diplomacy as Pakistan was still in the watch list. She said that US President Donald Trump initially added Pakistan in the list to defame the country. But later, she said, Mr Trump took a u-turn like Prime Minister Imran Khan. She said that the situation in Pakistan was not ideal and there was need of giving due rights to minorities. She, however, acknowledged that the situation in Pakistan was far better than in neighboring India. She said that India was not in the list despite committing atrocities against innocent Kashmirirs which was a failure of diplomacy.
The House passed the resolution with majority vote.
On completion of agenda, the chair prorogued the session.ax