Govt tables Pakistan Inquiry Commission Bill

Upper house passes Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Amendment Bill

ISLAMABAD: After the main opposition group, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), sailed its Panama Papers Inquiries Bill, 2016 in the Senate, the government on Tuesday also tabled in the upper house the Pakistan Inquiry Commission Bill, which has been already been adopted by the National Assembly.

Law Minister Zahid Hamid presented the bill, which was later sent to the relevant standing committee by Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani.



The chairman referred the issue of the Pakistan Study Centre at the Quaid-e-Azam University to a cabinet committee with the task to present its recommendations in two months as to how this centre could be saved from being closed down.

Senator Farhatullah Babar said since the dissolution of the federal ministry of education, the centre was declining and was now on the verge of complete downfall. “There is a need to save this centre from this death,” Baber said.

The house also passed Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Amendment Bill.

The chairman also approved an adjournment motion for discussion on a one-man commission’s report on August 8 Quetta carnage but rejected discussion on the 8th NFC award. Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan will give a policy statement after debate a two-hour debate.

The chairman told the Leader of the House Raja Zafar-ul-Haq that some of the members wanted to move an attention notice with reference to Indus Waters Treaty but the Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif was on leave till 22 December.



He said presence of the concerned minister be ensured as it was an important issue. He also advised Haq to discuss the issue of the C-130 flight to Chitral with the defence secretary.

The point of order, raised by Azam Musakhel, about forced evacuation of the residents of Loralai was handed over to the defence committee. The Minister of State for Interior Baleeghur Rehman told the house that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) investigates complaints about bureaucracy only.

“The FIA does not have the mandate to probe Panama Papers scandal,” he said.

(TRANSLATION BY ARSHAD SHAHEEN)

Published in The Express Tribune, December 21^st, 2016.