Daily Times

LAHORE: Opposition parties in the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday lashed out at the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government for increasing the prices of 70,000 medicines across the country through a notification.

Rejecting the recent increase in prices of medicines, Pakistan Muslim League (Q) legislator Chaudhry Amir Sultan Cheema filed a resolution against it in the Punjab Assembly Secretariat’s notice branch.

The leadership of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) have also strongly condemned the recent increase and demanded the government to withdraw the notification in this regard.

In the resolution of the PML-Q legislator Ch Amir Sultan Cheema, a request to the federal government from the Punjab Assembly was made in which it was demanded that the notification of increase in medicines’ prices must be withdrawn immediately, as the poor people would further be deprived of basic necessities through such act.

Separately, PTI Chairman’s advisor Dr Yasmin Rashid and former Punjab governor and party leader Ch Muhammad Sarwar demanded the Supreme Court of Pakistan to take suo motu action against the increase in prices of 70,000 medicines across the country, stating that the act was tantamount to sucking the blood of poor people of the country.

They said the poor people were already denied basic health facilities while increase in the prices of medicine in such prevailing circumstances was equivalent to cruelty and injustice. They said their party would expect any ‘betterment’ from the government and would push the Supreme Court of Pakistan take suo motu action against the notification and reverse the ‘illegal’ increase in prices of 70,000 life saving drugs across the country.

Dr Yasmin Rashid, lambasting the government, said the PML-N was on a killing spree of poor people by increases the prices of medicines. “The government was out to eliminate poor instead of poverty,” she asserted.

The PTI leader said that the medicines’ prices had been increased in connivance with the rulers to make quick money at the cost of poor masses. She said the incumbent rulers were pushing the country into a plethora of crisis, adding that it was now important to bring a change in the country.

Yasmin said the country would continue marching back until and unless corrupt system was not rooted out and a real change was not brought in the country.

Sarwar on the occasion said the political robbers have damaged the country and they must be sent to prisons to recover each penny. He said Imran khan was fighting for the rights of nation and the people of Pakistan stand by him in this war. “Nobody can stop him from becoming prime minister,” he added.

PPP legislator Faiza Malik, criticising the raise in prices of medicines, said that inflation had become a hobby of the PML-N government. She urged to withdraw the increase in prices of all 70,000 medicines in the country.