Opposition to take K-P govt to court over funds

Govt releases Rs100m for treasury lawmakers, Rs70.5m for opposition members

PESHAWAR: Members of opposition parties in the provincial assembly have decided to drag the provincial government to court for denying them share of development funds equivalent to what was granted to members of the treasury benches.

Leaders of opposition parties in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Assembly have rejected the government’s offer of providing Rs70.5 million funds for each opposition MPA and have decided to approach the court over the discriminatory practice by the provincial government.

A K-P opposition member told The Express Tribune that MPAs of the coalition government has been granted development funds worth over Rs100 million each.

Earlier, the K-P government had decided to release development funds worth Rs70.5 million to each MPA on opposition benches after they held protests on the matter during several sessions of the provincial assembly. The government had also decided to provide funds worth Rs30.5 million to each female and minority lawmaker as well.

The source further said that Khushdil Khan, a lawmaker from the Awami National Party (ANP) in the provincial assembly, who is also a lawyer, will soon initiate legal action against the government.

It added that the court will be urged to direct the government to provide equal amounts of funds to opposition members as well.

The opposition lawmakers had been protesting during the sittings of the K-P Assembly’s 11th session, demanding the release of development funds.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2020.