PM Nawaz arrives in NA to attend joint session on key legislations

Parliament scheduled to deliberate on as many as seven key pieces of legislation, including controversial PIA bill

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has arrived in the National Assembly to take part in a joint session which will deliberate on as many as seven key pieces of legislation, including the controversial bill on PIA, the national airline, Express News reported on Monday.

On Friday, the lower house of parliament had approved a motion to place the controversial Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (Conversion) Bill, 2016 on the agenda of the next joint session of the National Assembly.



Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Sheikh Aftab moved the motion in the lower house a day after President Mamnoon Hussain summoned the joint sitting following an agreement between the government and opposition.

The two sides had agreed on Thursday to take up several pending legislation, such as the Gas Theft Control and Recovery Bill, 2014, in the joint session. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, however, had assured the opposition that the PIA bill would only be tabled after briefing the latter’s representatives in detail over the contentious legislation.

During Friday’s lower house proceedings, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said the government will brief the opposition of both houses of parliament on the bill at 2pm on Monday. The joint session summoned by President Mamnoon will begin at 5pm that day, he said.



Other important bills on the agenda include the Emigration (Amendment) Bill, 2014; Civil Servants (amendment) Bill, 2014; Anti-Rape Laws (Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2015; and the Privatisation Commission (second amendment) bill, 2015.