President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday summoned the session of the National Assembly on April 11, 2011. According to National Assembly Secretariat sources, the three ordinances promulgated by President Asif Ali Zardari recently for levying 15 percent flood surcharge on taxable income, increase in excise duty from 1 to 2.5 per cent and imposition of 17 per cent sales tax on the sale of tractors and the president address to the join sitting of the parliament would be discussed in the first session of the fourth parliamentary year of National Assembly.
Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) sources said that the party would raise the issue of three ordinances promulgation by the President in the session. Similarly, other opposition parties including PML-Q and JUI-F would also oppose the ordinances during the discussion.
When contacted, PML-N Spokesman Ahsan Iqbal told Business Recorder that his party would raise the issue of ordinances and demanded immediate withdraw of the same. He said imposition of money bill through ordinance was against basic tradition of the parliament. "If such examples are set, then financial budget would also be come through an ordinance," he said.
Iqbal said that the government should get approval of taxation measures from the Parliament. According to handout issued by the National Assembly Secretariat on Thursday, the president has summoned the session of the National Assembly on April 11, 2011 at 4:00pm in the Parliament House. The president has summoned the National Assembly Session in exercise of powers conferred by clause (1) of Article 54 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, it added.