LAHORE:
The Punjab Assembly on Monday witnessed heated exchanges between the treasury and opposition benches over the recent visit of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister as proceedings were repeatedly marred by procedural disputes and sharp political rhetoric.
Tensions flared early in the session as members from both sides tried to raise points of order before question time. However, the presiding panel strongly rejected the requests and ruled that points of order could only be taken up after the end of question time.
Despite repeated protests, the chairman upheld the order and ordered the members to observe the rules of procedure.
At the request of the relevant department, all questions relating to the planning and development department were adjourned and the house proceeded with questions relating to other departments.
Chairman Panel Samiullah Khan also expressed strong displeasure over the absence of the Secretary and Special Secretary of Human Rights and Minority Affairs Department.
He termed their absence as “very irresponsible” and directed the secretary to ensure his presence in the next meeting.
He further ordered that the department’s issue be resumed on Tuesday’s agenda and he categorically rejected the presence of section officers as unacceptable.
During the proceedings, Finance Minister Ahsan Raza drew Parliament’s attention to what he described as a serious education crisis in Kasur district.
He claimed that almost 1.6 million children were currently out of school and called for the immediate recruitment of teachers. He also urged the government to reverse the decision to merge key education-related departments, warning that such measures worsened the situation.
From the opposition benches, Shoaib Ameer criticized the alleged treatment of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister and his delegation during their stay in Lahore.
He called the situation “embarrassing” and accused the assembly administration of bias, stressing that the speaker’s office was constitutionally bound to act neutrally. He further alleged that guests from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were subjected to unnecessary restrictions.
Reacting to the allegations, Provincial Minister Sohaib Ahmad Bharth categorically denied allegations of ill-treatment.
He said the KP Chief Minister and his delegation were provided complete security and protocol, with arrangements made well in advance.
He added that traffic police, Punjab police and Elite Force personnel were deployed and challenged opposition members to substantiate claims of mass arrests with FIRs and concrete evidence.
As the government failed to complete the quorum, the panel of chairpersons adjourned the session to 10 p.m. 11 a.m. on December 30.
