Senate greenlights Contempt of Parliament Bill

Upper house to meet today with a 53-point agenda

ISLAMABAD:

The Senate on Monday unanimously passed the Contempt of Parliament Bill, 2023.

Senator Kahuda Babar Baloch presented the bill that aims at penalizing and fining those who violate parliamentary privileges, including committees and members of parliament.

In a notable exchange, Senator Pir Sabir Shah of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) criticized a member of his own party, Rana Tanveer Hussain, questioning the decision to send the Pakistan Institute and Technology Bill, 2023 to the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

He expressed concern about the sanctity of the house and the role of HEC in this matter. Tanveer, who serves as the federal minister for defense production, defended the decision, raising issues related to recognition of degrees abroad and the prevalence of fake degrees.

Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi voiced concerns during the Senate meeting about the high salaries and perks of the HEC officers and questioned the commission's effectiveness in dealing with institutions operating without a no objection certificate (NOC).

The Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was presented in the House by Senator Humayun Mohmand and was subsequently sent to the relevant committee by the Senate chairman.

Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan of the Jamaat-e-Islami noted that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) was currently working under the influence of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) rather than a state as envisioned by the Founder of the Nation.

He said the government cannot borrow from the SBP and must resort to loans from foreign institutions. Senator Mushtaq proposed discussing this matter in the relevant committee, leading to the presentation of the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2023.

However, the motion to present the Pakistan Ehsaas Protection Programme Bill, 2023 was rejected in the house, sparking a debate on the significance of social welfare programmes for the underprivileged.

Dr Sania Nishtar, who had moved the bill, highlighted issues such as health insurance card limitations, exclusion of medicines from the coverage, and the plight of those unable to afford follow-up check-ups after operations.

Shazia Marri of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) expressed concerns about the exclusion of 820,000 people from the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) without valid reasons.

She stressed the need to address the needs of the poor. She advocated shifting the successful Ehsaas Ration Programme to the Pakistan Baitul Mal instead of terminating it.

Senator Taj Haider of the PPP presented a motion to discuss the federal government’s decision not to allow the People's Bus Service ply Karachi’s Lyari Expressway. He argued for allocating resources for building houses for flood victims and installing solar panels on millions of houses.

The upcoming Senate meeting, scheduled for 3pm today (Tuesday), has a comprehensive 53-point agenda, which includes the introduction of various bills and amendments.

The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2023; the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2023; the Pakistan Nursing Council (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and the Trade Organization (Amendment) Bill, 2022 are among the bills to be discussed.

Additionally, the agenda included a resolution addressing Pakistanis involved in a Greek boat accident and motion-related topics, particularly concerning the Lyari Express to Karachi bus service.