Opposition grills govt on wheat price
A majority of ECC members feared that any increase in wheat flour prices could provide fuel to the opposition parties which had already made inflation a big issue. PHOTO: REUTERS
The opposition lawmakers grilled the treasury benches on Wednesday over reluctance of the federal government to accept the Rs2,000 per 40kg wheat support price unanimously approved by Punjab Assembly.
Provincial Law Minister Raja Basharat made clear that mill owners would face fine if farmers were not paid their dues within three months.
Legislators from both the treasury and opposition were at loggerheads to put the blame of failures on each other and the opposition’s strong protest continued for third day.
On a point of order, former PML-N speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal said, “It is tantamount to disgracing the province’s top forum that Punjab Assembly approved the support price of wheat but the federal government is not willing to accept it”.
PPP parliamentary leader Syed Hassan Murtaza said the farmers were being mocked. He said every institution had weakened. "We are being given wheat at the rate of Rs2,800, although it was earlier available for Rs1,400.
The PPP MPA said no government would be in a position to overcome the problems created by the flawed polices of the present regime. The government is taking people towards the edge of destruction rather than pulling them from the prevailing imbroglio.
The law minister said it was premature to blame the the federal government over the issue.
"We have discussed the matter with Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar who himself will discuss it with Speaker Chaudhry Perbaiz Elahi and the government will accept whatever decision is taken," Basharat added.
He said it was for the first time that the sugarcane crushing season had started after the announcement of the government in central and south Punjab. He said the opposition should think a hundred times before indulging in a blame game over farmers' rights, adding that he knew about prominent personalities who had yet to clear the dues of the farmers amounting to billions of rupees.
The opposition lawmakers assembled in front of the speaker and chanted anti-government slogans. The lawmakers hindered the proceedings of the House from moving ahead as a result of which he prorogued the session for an ndefinite period.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 12th, 2020.