Opposition flays govt for ‘no-show’ in budget session

LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly’s budget debate turned confrontational on Saturday as opposition lawmakers accused the government of showing little seriousness toward the proceedings after Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman was absent when the sitting began.

The second day of the general discussion on the provincial budget started late because of the minister’s absence. Treasury members initially sought to carry on with the session, saying officials from the finance department were present to note down lawmakers’ proposals. The opposition, however, refused to proceed, arguing that only the finance minister could formally receive recommendations on the budget.

The standoff drew in Deputy Speaker Zaheer Iqbal Channar, who was presiding over the session. He also raised concerns over the minister not being present and said the opposition’s objection was justified. He questioned how members’ proposals could be properly recorded without the finance minister in the house.

Opposition criticises treasury benches

Earlier in the session, Opposition Leader Moin Riaz Qureshi criticised the government benches, saying neither the finance minister nor other cabinet members were present even though the budget debate was the most important part of the parliamentary calendar. He alleged that the government was not interested in listening to lawmakers’ recommendations and said the people of Punjab were seeing the treasury’s lack of seriousness.

The disagreement sharpened when treasury Chief Whip Rana Muhammad Arshad insisted that ministry officials were available to document the proposals. The deputy speaker rejected that position and maintained that the finance minister himself should attend the debate.

Opposition members, including Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan, also argued that replying to the budget discussion was the responsibility of the finance minister rather than the chief whip. During the exchange, Rana Aftab remarked that the session was not like a village fair.

Tense exchanges during sitting

The atmosphere in the assembly grew tense as treasury and opposition members traded sharp remarks. The deputy speaker later ordered objectionable comments to be removed from the official record.

The deadlock eased only after Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman eventually arrived in the assembly, allowing the general debate on the provincial budget to resume.

The opposition maintained throughout the confrontation that budget proposals could not be meaningfully debated without the minister’s presence, and at one stage accused the government of appearing to boycott the proceedings on some occasions while the finance minister was missing on others.