Parliament can’t decide on Sindh without Assembly’s nod: PPP

KARACHI: Sindh Labour Minister Saeed Ghani on Friday said that while the National Assembly and Senate can debate matters relating to the province and even pass resolutions, they cannot take any decision affecting Sindh without the Sindh Assembly’s approval.

Speaking to reporters outside the provincial assembly, Ghani said the Sindh Assembly had already rejected the relevant resolution, so there was no need for the National Assembly to pass another resolution on the matter.

“There is no restriction on holding discussions on the issue,” he said. If matters could be debated at hotels and universities, there was no reason why they could not be discussed in legislatures, he argued.

Ghani said the Sindh Assembly had recently unanimously supported a resolution moved by a Jamaat-e-Islami member calling for the reduction or withdrawal of the petroleum levy imposed by the federal government.

“We believe that the levy imposed by the federal government on petroleum products should be withdrawn,” he said, while acknowledging that global petroleum prices had also risen because of higher international market rates.

On rising flour prices, the minister said the Sindh government was taking measures to stabilise the market and provide relief to consumers. The issue, he added, had also been discussed at a recent meeting of the provincial cabinet.

“We are trying to ensure that flour is provided to the people of Sindh at its actual cost,” Ghani said.

Commenting on proposed amendments to the Sindh local government system, Ghani said a meeting of the relevant standing committee would clarify whether the changes had been proposed at the request of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

“I think the MQM itself did not even know about these amendments,” he remarked.

He said amendments to laws were a routine legislative process and were not confined to local government legislation.

“The proposed amendments to the Sindh Local Government Act are not that bad and will ultimately benefit the people,” he said.

On the deployment of Rangers and the grant of powers to the paramilitary force in Sindh, Ghani said the arrangement was not new, noting that Rangers had been operating in the province for decades.

He said a legal framework was required to confer powers on the force and that the necessary legal provisions were already in place.

Ghani stressed that maintaining law and order remained primarily the responsibility of the police, while Rangers had been deployed to assist them.

“This is not limited to Sindh; Rangers are also present in other provinces and are performing the role assigned to them,” he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026