NA extends tax law ordinance for 4 months

The National Assembly on Tuesday – the last day of its current session – extended the Tax Laws (Second Amendment) Ordinance 2022 for a period of 120 days, drawing strong criticism from a Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) lawmaker.

The house met here with Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf in the chair. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Murtaza Javed Abbasi presented a resolution to extend the ordinance. However, Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali of the JI criticised the government.

He said that the current coalition used to criticise the previous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government for “running the country through ordinances” but now they also are doing the same. The speaker agreed with the contention of Chitrali, directing the government to bring a bill on the ordinance.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) member Qadir Khan Mandokhel raised the issue of gas shortage in Karachi, saying that new connections were not being given to the people of his constituency. Parliamentary Secretary for Petroleum Hamid Hameed replied that efforts were afoot to check gas load-shedding.

He said that a gas load-management plan was being implemented to ensure the supply to the domestic consumers during cooking hours. Referring to the depletion of gas reserves, he said work was ongoing on exploration of new oil and gas reserves.

Hameed said that a new policy would be formulated for new connections, adding that no work had been done on infrastructure during the last four years.

He told the house that work on a pipeline had started in Saeedabad, while that on another 20-kilometre pipeline would begin soon.

Dissident PTI member Dr Afzal Dhandla moved the calling-attention notice regarding inaccurate survey of the flood-affected areas in southern Punjab. Another dissident lawmaker, Sardar Riaz Mazari, also moved the calling-attention notice on the same issue.

“If the Punjab government conducted a wrong survey, it is responsible for it,” Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Javed Abbasi said, instructing the National Disaster Management Authority to conduct a survey of the flood victims with the support of local lawmakers.

Noor Alam Khan said that the Punjab government was hostile towards them. “Fake cases are being lodged against us and [former Punjab speaker] Dost Mohammad Mazari is a clear example of political victimisation,” he added.

Noor asked why the government was not invoking Article 6 (high treason) against those who abuse the state institutions. The speaker remarked that the Constitution of Pakistan did not allow anyone to insult the state institutions. Later, the session was adjourned indefinitely.