Senate Chairman Nayyar Hussain Bokhari sought details from the leader of opposition in the House, Ishaq Dar, regarding letters written by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to 247 parliamentarians.
Earlier, Senator Saeed Ghani on a point of order, said after a list of members having fake degrees was published in the press‚ a loaded letter was written by the ECP to the concerned members. He said the main job of ECP is to ensure holding of elections in a free‚ fair and impartial manner without getting involved in other issues.
Following this statement, Bokhari sought details of the letter from Senator Dar.
Dar said the ECP had written letters to those 247 parliamentarians who had not submitted their degrees for verification with the ECP. He said for further debate on the issue, the matter can be handed over to Senate Special Committee for Election Commission.
Sughra Imam said matters relating to conduct of elections should be handed over to the special commission.
Speaking on a point of order, Zahid Khan said the interior minister should provide specific details of suicide plots and inform the provincial authorities because he has assistance of all major intelligence agencies at his disposal.
Islamuddin Sheikh said government has no intention of withholding information from anyone. He said a request has been made with the prime minister to allow an in-camera briefing on killings in Karachi and Quetta.
Dar said there has been a reshuffle in the finance ministry but the process lacked transparency. He said important economic matters including information on fiscal policy‚ monetary policy and GDP should be shared with members of parliament because collective wisdom was required to solve economic challenges.
Mohsin Leghari said an international court in The Hague had allowed India to build Kishinganga dam which was a set-back for Pakistan.
Hafiz Hamdullah said the political symbol of their party had been modified, terming it unfair for their party.
Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat, Capital and Administration and Development Chairperson Kalsoom Parveen presented before the House a report of “The Islamabad Capital Territory Private Educational Institutions (Registration and Regulation) Bill‚ 2013”.
The next session of the House is scheduled for Monday, 4 pm.
