LAHORE: During the official proceedings of the Punjab Assembly session on Wednesday five new bills were presented, including Punjab Public Private Partnership Bill 2025,
Punjab Forensic Science Authority Bill 2025, Punjab Local Government (Amendment) Bill 2025, Punjab Infrastructure Development Cess (Amendment) Bill 2025 and Punjab Vagrancy (Amendment) Bill 2025 were introduced by the Provincial Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman. The bills were referred to committees which will present their report in two months.
Notably, the bills were presented in the absence of opposition members, with only a handful of government representatives present in the assembly during the proceedings.
Earlier, Punjab Finance Minister Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman kicked off the pre-budget debate in the Punjab Assembly, stating that not all members will have the opportunity to share their thoughts on the budget during the four-day proceeding. He informed the assembly members that the budget proposal form has been sent to all members, which needs to be completed and submitted by Friday.
Rehman emphasized the importance of members submitting proposals that will contribute to the betterment of the people of Punjab. He stressed that a comprehensive discussion can only be held once members have completed the forms and presented their proposals.
Opposition Leader Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar has strongly criticized the government’s actions in the Punjab Assembly, questioning the need for a costly assembly session to approve the supplementary grant when it could have been done through the cabinet. Bhachar labelled the Punjab government as “a living corpse,” stating that the government is prioritizing unnecessary projects, such as the Horse and Cattle Show, over public interest.
Bhachar accused the government of allocating Rs. 1.5 billion for unnecessary projects. He also criticized government for raiding and harassing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) members and workers on February 8. He asked, “Is this the new face of democracy?” He vowed to continue raising his voice against the government’s incompetence on public issues.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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