Pakistan National Assembly refuses funds for Punjab polls, again

Islamabad [Pakistan], April 19 : Pakistan National Assembly has once again refused to grant PKR 21 billion to the Election Commission Pakistan to hold general elections in Punjab, The News.com reported.

The National Assembly on Monday by a majority vote rejected the supplementary demand to provide PKR 21 billion to the federal government to meet the expenditure during the current fiscal year in respect of the ECP to hold general elections in Punjab.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supported the demand while the government members opposed it and subsequently, the House rejected the motion by majority vote, The News.com reported.

Earlier, the National Assembly first approved the report of the Standing Committee on the issue of providing funds for elections in Punjab in which the standing committee recommended not to release the funds without the approval of the National Assembly.

Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar moved the report of the Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on the matter to discuss and propose recommendations in response to media reports that the Supreme Court directed the State Bank of Pakistan to release funds to the ECP for the purpose of holding a poll in Punjab without prior approval of the National Assembly, The News.com reported.

The National Assembly adopted the standing committee report, following which the law minister moved a summary to grant PKR 21 billion to the federal government to meet the expenditure of holding elections in Punjab.

Speaking in the National Assembly, the law minister said that the federal cabinet had referred the matter to the National Assembly which had the authority to approve or disapprove additional expenses under Articles 82 (2) and 84 of the Constitution, The News.com reported.

He said the appropriate forum was the National Assembly, "which accords approval of expenses from the Federal Consolidated Fund" and that was why the cabinet had referred the matter to the House. He said that this House passed the resolution to hold elections on the same day in the whole country.

He said the Supreme Court had ordered the State Bank to release the money from the Federal Consolidated Fund, adding that the cabinet and the standing committee referred the matter to House.

Speaker National Assembly Raja Pervez Ashraf referred the matter to the Standing Committee of Finance and Revenues and directed that report be submitted to the National Assembly. Earlier, the federal cabinet referred the summary of the Finance Ministry regarding the provision of funds to the ECP for elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the National Assembly.

Meanwhile, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) informed the National Standing Committee on Finance that the central bank allocated funds of PKR 21 billion for holding elections in Punjab under the directives of the Supreme Court but they did not possess the authority to release these funds, The News.com reported.

SBP acting Governor Seema Kamil told the parliamentary panel that in order to comply with the order of the apex court, the SBP allocated funds of PKR 21 billion for holding elections in Punjab but it was not the authority of the central bank to release these allocated funds.