Parliament Passes 33 Bills, Legislates For Use Of EVMs

The government and joint opposition Wednesday flexed their muscles in joint session of Parliament but the treasury succeeded to get maximum bills (33 out of 34 bills) passed with the support of its allies

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th Nov, 2021 ) :The government and joint opposition Wednesday flexed their muscles in joint session of Parliament but the treasury succeeded to get maximum bills (33 out of 34 bills) passed with the support of its allies.

A total of 29 bills appeared on the 'order of the day' out of which the joint session of Parliament passed 28 bills while five bills were considered in the House as supplementary agenda.

Only one bill the Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was deferred while the remaining 33 legislative proposals were passed.

Advisor to Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Dr. Babar Awan presented the Elections (Second Amendment) Bill, 2021 to amend the Elections Act, 2017 thereby permitting the use of electronic voting machines for polls and granting overseas Pakistanis the right to vote.

The motion to consider the bill was passed with majority vote as a total of 221 lawmakers voted in favor of the motion while 203 lawmakers opposed it.

The Parliament rejected the amendments moved by the opposition lawmakers including MNA Mohsin Dawar, Senator Taj Haider and Mushtaq Ahmed.

The Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser asked opposition lawmakers to remain present on their seats on his left side for count of vote but his directions were not followed and he had to announce the passage of amendments moved by the government through voice voting.

Later, there was a hue and cry and exchange of hot words, with treasury members banging their desks triumphantly.

The Opposition staged a walk out from the joint session of parliament as amendments to this bill were passed with majority vote.

Other twenty-seven (27) bills passed by the House included the international Court of Justice (Review and Re-consideration) Bill, 2021; the Islamabad Capital Territory Charities Registration, Regulation and Facilitation Bill, 2021; the SBP Banking Services Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the National College of Arts Institute Bill, 2021; the Muslim Family Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 (Amendment in Section 4); the Muslim Family Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 (Amendment in Section 7); the Anti-Rape ( investigation and Trial) Bill , 2021; the Hyderabad Institute for Technical and Management Sciences Bill, 2021; the Islamabad Rent Restriction (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Corporate Restructuring Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Financial institutions (Secured Transactions) (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Federal Public Service Commission (Validation of Rules) Bill, 2021; the University of Islamabad Bill, 2021; the Loans for Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Purposes (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Companies (Amendment) Bill , 2021; the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Pakistan academy of Letters (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Port Qasim Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (Amendment) Bill,2021; the Gwadar Port authority (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Maritime Security Agency (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Emigration (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Privatization Commission (Amendment) Bill,2021; COVID-19 (Prevention of Hoarding) Bill, 2021; the Al-Karam International Institute Bill, 2021 and the Islamabad Capital Territory Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill, 2021.

The Parliament also passed a motion moved under Article 154(7) of the Constitution read with rule 20 of the Parliament (Joint Sittings) Rules, 1973 that the Parliament in Joint Sitting may consider and decide the fate of Council of Common Interests decision regarding population Census 2017, keeping in view the reservations of Government of Sindh.

The Joint Sitting also considered supplementary agenda comprising five bills and passed all of them. These bills were Islamabad Capital Territory food Safety Bill, 2O21; the Unani, Ayurvedic and Homoeopathic Practitioners (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2021; the Provincial Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2021 and the Regulation of Generation, Transmission and Distribution of Electric Power (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

Later, the Speaker National Assembly prorogued the 10th jointing sitting of the parliament and congratulated the all lawmakers over legislation.