Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Legislators in the Lower House of Parliament on Tuesday rejected a resolution over granting financial aid to the poor for the purpose of performing pilgrimage. The resolution was tabled by Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) Shahida Rehmani, in which she seek that the government should take appropriate steps to grant subsidy to low income persons on their first Hajj. However, MNAs Sirajul Haq, Mehmood Achakzai objected by mentioning that the impoverished were not liable to perform Hajj.

Another resolution regarding dispatching a high-level government delegation to Madina of Saudi Arabia in Rabiul Awwal was moved by Captain Safdar which was unanimously approved. Minister of State for Religious Affairs Interfaith Harmony, Pir Aminul Hasnat Shah supported the resolution. Safdar demanded that the government of Pakistan constitute a high level delegation to commemorate the birth day of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) at his Roza Mubarak”, to pay homage on behalf of the people of the country in recognition and gratitude of his blessings for humanity.

Through a private resolution, the government informed the house it would conduct the national census in March 2017, clarifying the nation-wide exercise could not be carried out earlier owing to unavailability of military personnel. Federal Minister for State and Frontier Regions Lt. General (Retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch assured the House while speaking on a resolution moved by Sheikh Salahuddin in the National Assmbly regarding holding of a census in the country.

The opposition lawmakers said that the government was intentionally delaying the census as it did not want a judicious distribution of resources among the smaller provinces especially the NFC Award, as these things do not benefit Punjab. The Minister said that the last census was also conducted by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and this time too it would undertake this charge. Sheikh Salahuddin, mover of the resolution taking part in the debate, said that the holding of national census was the need of the hour and it should be held at the earliest. Naeema Kishwar, Ejaz Jakhrani, Phyllis Azeem, Muzammil Quershi and Shazia Marri said that the issue related to census should be discussed in the Parliament.

Responding to a notice moved by Asiya Naz Tanoli and others regarding increasing trend of use of drugs by the students in the government and private schools and colleges in Islamabad, Minister of State for Capital Administration and Development Division Tariq Fazal Chaudhary told the House that no such case had been registered so far. He said basically attention notice was based on the report of an NGO. He categorically rejected the facts and figures presented by the NGO in its report.