Opposition to challenge bills passed by ruling party

The temperature in the provincial assembly is expected to rise as opposition gears up to challenge the ruling party over bills passed since it took over the reins of power.

According to details available with the Express Tribune, the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), the main opposition party in the provincial legislature, is planning to challenge 21 of the 63 bills passed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) over the past 30 months.

When asked for details, the PML-N accused the ruling party of circumventing parliamentary rules in the process of passing these bills.

“A total of 21 bills were passed against the Punjab Assembly Rules of Procedure 154 Sub-section 6 and we plan to challenge them in the court,” cautioned Uzma Bukhari, a PML-N lawmaker.

Bukhari said her party has created a dedicated committee to scrutinize these bills and will take all steps to prevent the government from violating legislative rules.

Some bills, Bukhari claimed, were passed without the minimum number of lawmakers required to be present at a sitting of the house. She said her party plans to challenge the bills before the provincial legislature’s Business Advisory Committee and then take the matter to the speaker of the house. “If our concerns are not addressed, we will challenge these bills in the court,” warned Bukhari.

Talking to the Express Tribune, members of the PML-N claimed their party’s legislative committee has already reviewed all bills passed by the ruling party. “The provincial government has pushed 50% of the bills without following the rules and regulations,” they claimed.

According to sources familiar with the development, the opposition has already requested for an official report of the parliamentary proceedings.

In a terse statement, Raja Basharat, who serves as the provincial law minister, rejected all allegations leveled by the opposition. He said all rules and procedures were followed. “The opposition should raise their concerns and we will respond accordingly,” said Basharat. The law minister vowed to defend the bills “as far as possible.”

Standing committees

The PML-N lawmakers also heaped scorn over the ruling party for not being able to establish standing committees. “It has been more than two years, but they haven’t been able to establish fully functional parliamentary panels,” claimed PML-N’s Uzma Bukhari.

Parliamentary panels, the PML-N lawmaker said, play an important role in the legislative process. “Their absence has led to a stalemate,” she added. When asked about the status of the standing committees in the provincial assembly, the law minister admitted that some panels were not functional.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 25^th, 2021.