The opposition in the Senate on Wednesday questioned the National Accountability Bureau's (NAB) decision of shelving probe into sugar crisis that it started some two weeks back.
On a point of order, newly elected Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) Senator Babar Awan asked the government to explain the rationale behind ending the probe inconclusive.
"What NAB is for and why the government is spending a lot to run this institution if it can't probe such a huge scandal like that of sugar?" Babar questioned.
The NAB started a probe into the sugar crisis that led to an all-time high prices in the country's history some two weeks back but announced to shelve it early this week.
The bureau said it ended the investigation because it could lead to further hike in prices as the importers and dealers were scared of it.
But some independent experts believed it was on the pressure of some 'uncontrollable' lobbies of sugar millers within the cabinet.
Another PPPP Senator Enver Baig wanted to know as to when President General Pervez Musharraf would address the joint session of the Parliament as per a Constitutional requirement.
But no answer came from the government, as the Parliamentary Affairs Minister was not present in the House. President Musharraf defied the said Constitutional requirement last year with the fear that he might face a strong protest by the opposition.
The issue of laying off 2,500 Habib Bank's low-grade employees also echoed in the Senate and Chairman Mohammadmian Soomro took time before taking a decision on weather or not to refer the matter to Standing Committee on Finance.
PPPP Senator Mian Raza Rabbani raised the issue after the question hour, alleging that the government's economic policies were 'big business-friendly'. He cited the instance of sacking of the Habib Bank employees that included drivers, security personnel and technicians.
Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao informed the Senate that there was no truth in the impression that terrorists and miscreants cross into Afghanistan from here and carry out terror acts there.
He was responding to a point of order by Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal's Senator from Fata, Mohammad Hussain, who raised the issue of what he called the on-going operation against innocent civilians, resulting in death of women and children.
The Senator quoted a reported interview of Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Major General Shaukat Sultan, wherein he revealed terrorists were indulging in terror acts in Afghanistan from the tribal belt. The minister contradicted the content of the interview.
Mohammad Hussain said that owing to bombardment and curfew for the last 20 days, majority of residents of Waziristan was fleeing for safer places.
He flayed the government for the loss of innocent civilians, particularly women and children, in bombing by the security forces. "Please stop this atrocity. You want dialogue and at the same time, killing civilians," he charged.
The House offered Fateha for the victims of mine blast in Dera Bugti, which claimed 28 lives last week.
Journalists from Press Gallery staged a token walkout against the alleged thrashing of a Sindhi TV channel journalist and cameraman by Sindh Minister Altaf Unar.
Earlier, the government and opposition senators expressed sympathy with the bank employees, who were terminated without any show-cause notice and those who served for less than 25 years were denied benefits, including pension.
MMA Senator Professor Khurshid Ahmed tabled a resolution for concessions to former senators.
The House unanimously adopted the resolution that called for ex-senators free access to the Senate Secretariat, free entry to the VIP Lounge, access to diplomatic missions and allotment of space in the Parliament Lodges, if available.
The first formal sitting of the Senate started after hectic negotiations between some treasury members including Chairman Mohammadmian Soomro and the united opposition to amicably end the stand-off between Soomro and PPPP Senator Safdar Abbasi on Sunday, following a verbal row between the two.
The Democratic Alliance and MMA had separate meetings, followed by a joint meeting and later, the government senators, and opposition members held a meeting, which resulted in ending the stand-off. The House resumed business with delay of more than two hours.
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