National Assembly | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers belonging to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a major partner in the ruling coalition, on Tuesday continued their criticism of the federal budget for the next fiscal year, lambasting the federal government over its alleged discriminatory policies towards the party-ruled Sindh province. Taking part in the general debate on the federal budget in the National Assembly, almost every PPP member delivered a similar speech in which they highlighted the “injustices and excesses” being committed by the Centre with the Sindh province by denying its due share in the development plans. Members of MQM-Pakistan, another key partner in the ruling coalition, also expressed their reservations on meagre allocations for various projects in Sindh, but at the same time they also targeted the PPP-led Sindh government, accusing it of ignoring Karachi. PPP lawmakers mainly protested over “failure” of the federal government in handing over the projects which were being carried out by now-defunct Public Works Dep...

National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Sunday approved the parliamentary schedule for the upcoming federal budget session, with its presentation slated for June 10 and a parliamentary session discussing it scheduled for June 13, according to a statement from the NA Secretariat. As announced by Adviser to the Finance Minister Khurram Schehzad, the federal budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 will be presented on June 10, while the Pakistan Economic Survey will be released a day earlier. According to today’s statement, Sadiq approved the NA’s schedule for the budget, which will be presented in the lower house on June 10. “There will not be any sessions in the National Assembly on June 11 and 12,” Sadiq was quoted as saying. “The discussion on the federal budget will begin in the National Assembly on June 13 [and] parliamentary parties present … will be given time for discussion as per the rules and regulations,” he added. According to the statement, debates on the federal budget will continue until June 2...