ISLAMABAD: The Senate’s Standing Committee on Finance Thursday unanimously rejected the Charged Sums for General Election (Provincial Assemblies of the Punjab and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Bill, 2023 after reviewing it in detail.
The bill was introduced in the Senate earlier in the day and referred to the committee for deliberations.
The committee met at the Parliament House under the chairmanship of Senator Dilawar Khan, said a press release.
Minister of State for Finance Aisha Ghaus Pasha informed the committee that Pakistan was facing financial difficulties.
“The government is trying to control the deficit, and does not have the capacity to provide funds for holding elections in the two provinces,” she added.
She said that the floods in 2022 had proved to be a great disaster for the economy. The were still waiting for aid while the government had very limited resources, she added.
Senator Mohsin Aziz said the bill was beyond the scope of the Senate.
Senator Mossadeq Malik said both the National Assembly and the Senate had already given their decision, which had not yet been notified. Legislation was the discretion of the Parliament, he added.
Senator Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar viewed that in the larger national interests both the government and the opposition should resolve the issue through negotiations.
Senator Syed Faisal Ali Sabzwari, while opposing the bill, said the Supreme Court had set 120 days not 90 days for the elections. The Punjab Assembly elections, as per SC order, would be held on May 14, while the term of remaining assemblies would end on August 13.
