ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Thursday rejected a bill seeking release of Rs21 billion in funds for holding elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in line with the directives issued by the Supreme Court.
Talking to a private TV Channel after the committee meeting, panel chairman Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh said that the bill was rejected. “This bill as it was not allocated in our budget and the finance minister has said that funds are not available, there was no other option [so] we rejected it. We do not have any other fund, right the committee does not have funds of its own”, he said.
The Supreme Court on April 4 had fixed May 14 as the date for the polls in Punjab and directed the federal government to release Rs21 billion in funds to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) by April 10 for elections to both assemblies.
The government, however, instead of disbursing the funds to the commission, referred the matter to Parliament.
The bill, titled “Charged Sum for General Election (Provincial Assemblies of Punjab & Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Bill 2023”, had been tabled by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in the NA and the Senate on Monday. However, both sessions had been adjourned that day. During Thursday’s meeting, the committee Chairman Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh raised an objection on why the bill was presented before the finance committee and not the budget committee. The committee then rejected the bill.
The bill stated that funds required for conducting elections in both the provinces shall be “an expenditure charged upon the Federal Consolidated Fund (FCF)”, which it said comprises all revenues received by the federal government, all loans raised by the government and all money received by it in repayment of any loan.”
It said it shall “override other laws” and have effect “notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, rules and regulations” when it was in force.
The bill further said that the proposed law would stand repealed once elections for both assemblies were held, noting that the general elections and polls to the Sindh and Balochistan assemblies need not be held for it to be repealed.
‘Dar not serious about economic affairs’
Earlier, during meeting of the NA Standing Committee on Finance Chairman Qaiser Shaikh criticized Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for skipping the meeting summoned to discuss election funds.
The meeting discussed the issue of funds release to the Election Commission of Pakistan for the elections in Punjab and KP. However, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar did not attend the important meeting on which the committee chairman lashed out at his own party’s finance minister.
Qaiser Sheikh said that the Finance Minister was not serious about the economic affairs of the country. The presidents of the National Bank and the Agricultural Development Bank have been absent for a year from the committee, he added.
He said that the government bill should not be passed unless the finance minister attends the meeting. The chairman also said that if Ishaq Dar does not appear in the standing committee, he will resign from its chairmanship.
