The Punjab Assembly was in an uproar on Thursday after a provincial minister used uncouth words with a female assembly member. The session started 35 minutes late but was disrupted after the altercation occurred when Speaker Rana Iqbal Ahmad Khan initiated the question hour and Social Welfare and Women Development Department In-charge Minister Kamran Michael answered the legislators’ questions concerning his department. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) legislators Sajida Mir, Rifat Sultana Dar and Hassan Murtaza and Seemal Kamran, supported by PML-Q leader Ch Zaheer, staged a walk-out from the house and protested against the remarks of Punjab Finance Minister Kamran Michel directed at Seemal Kamran, leaving the treasury to try to rescue the minister and the speaker from the opposition’s allegations.
Michael informed the house that the Punjab government had ended financial assistance to non-governmental organisations after embezzlement reports, especially those concerning the NGO of federal minister Manzoor Wattoo’s daughter Robina Shaheen Wattoo. He said the NGO was given Rs 20 million by the previous government for holding combined marriages at the Punjab Governor’s House.
Answering a question raised by Seemal, the minister stated that government was awarding a stipend of Rs 500 each to the NGOs’ teachers and was going to increase the stipend to Rs 3,000 each.
Double-meanings: Seemal highlighted the minister’s contradictory statement regarding the government’s assistance to NGOs and demanded a clarification by the minister. Michael said that ‘He will satisfy her fully’, at which Seemal pointed out the double meaning of the statement. The speaker directed the minister to give a satisfactory answer to which the minister replied: “Mr Speaker, you told me to her satisfy her answer and I just answered that I will fully satisfy her and did not use any un-parliamentary word.”
Seemal protested strongly and walked out saying that the Minister should satisfy his colleagues, the Punjab chief minister, the government and the ministers. After three minutes she ended her walk-out and joined the house.
Meanwhile the Speaker announced ending the one hour-long Question Hour session, at which Sajida stood at her bench and requested the speaker answer her questions regarding the welfare of women in Punjab. When the Speaker did not hear her, she became agitated and threw her dupatta towards the treasury saying they were non-serious about the issue at hand.
The treasury also retaliated to the opposition’s claims. The treasury and the opposition continued their allegations against each other despite the speaker’s efforts to calm them down. The situation came under control when the speaker announced the removal of the offensive words from the proceedings. PML-N member Saeed Niwani demanded that the CM join the house to strengthen the parliamentary traditions.
Nighat Nasir Sheikh moved an adjournment motion regarding corruption in the Excise and Taxation Department. In another adjournment motion, she highlighted the issue of 34 serious errors in the Punjab Text Book Board books. The Speaker referred the matters to the parliamentary standing committee.
Rifat, in her privilege motion informed the house that a DSP and an Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) humiliated her and colleague Sajida Mir on a police picket and took away her NIC. She demanded the law minister Rana Sanaullah to return her ID card in the house. The law minister ensured her that he would call the DSP concerned and return her card.
The house also adopted the Punjab Administrator General’s (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Charitable and Religious Trusts (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Antiquities (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Punjab Conferment of Proprietary Rights on Occupancy Tenants and Maqarraridars Bill 2011, the Punjab Protection of Breast-Feeding and Child Nutrition (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Disabled Persons (Employment and Rehabilitation) (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Official Trustees (Amendment) Bill 2011, the Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2011, and the Voluntary Social Welfare Agencies (Registration and Control) (Amendment) Bill 2011.
PML-N submits missing persons resolution in PA: The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) submitted a resolution in the provincial assembly on Thursday requesting the details of the Pakistanis detained in foreign countries.
The resolution was submitted by the PML-N backed provincial assembly member Zia Ullah Shah in the Punjab Assembly Notice Branch.
He requested the federal government to provide details about the Pakistanis held abroad including their actual numbers and the names of the foreign countries concerned.
The resolution also asked the federal government to provide information about the alleged crimes for which the Pakistanis were being held in custody and the steps taken by the federal government for their release.
The foreign office was also questioned about its role in securing the release of the detainees. The resolution also asked the federal government if the Pakistanis in question had been handed over by the government.
