Annual Parliamentary Report 2024-25: Senate passes total of 23 bills in 12 sessions comprising 64 sittings

ISLAMABAD: The Senate passed a total of 23 bills in its 12 sessions comprising 64 sittings covering a period of 111 days in the last parliamentary year, according to an annual document of the Upper House of the Parliament.

Released by the Senate Secretariat, the Annual Parliamentary Report of the Senate for Parliamentary Year 2024-2025 suggests, the House passed 12 government bills and 11 private members’ bills in the last parliamentary year (12 March 2024 – 11 March 2025).

According to the Senate Secretariat, the 26th Constitutional Amendment was “one of the most important,” passed by the Senate in the last parliamentary year.

As many as 16 ordinances were laid before the Senate during the parliamentary year 2024-2025, said the report. The House also passed 17 resolutions in the last parliamentary year, the report states.

The highest attendance in a Senate sitting was recorded at 78 members on 9 April 2024 in the 336th Senate session. Minimum attendance was recorded at 21 members on 25 October last year in the 343rd session, the report notes.

Syed Masroor Ahsan from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had highest attendance in Senate in the last parliamentary year. He attended 62 Senate meetings, followed by Kamil Ali Agha from Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML-Q), Hidayatullah Khan from Awami National Party (ANP), and Nadeem Ahmed Bhutto and Husna Bano from PPP—all of whom attended 59 Senate meetings in the last parliamentary year, reveals the report.

The report also reflects on the performance of various branches of the Senate Secretariat which include Legislation Branch, Question Branch, Motion Branch, Research Directorate, Media Directorate, Inter-Parliamentary Relations Branch, Parliamentary Development Unit, Administration Branch, Service Branch, Reporting Directorate, Legislative Drafting Unit, Information Technology Directorate, Human Resource Management Branch and other important wings of the Secretariat, said an official statement on Friday.

The legislative interventions made during the parliamentary year pertained to combating human trafficking, legislation for protecting victims of violence, and also introducing systems for e-governance and digital security besides using other parliamentary tools to voice concerns for the rights of Kashmiris and Palestinians, climate action and electoral integrity, the statement said.

The Senate also encouraged women’s active role in national development by incorporating more gender-responsive legislation particularly focusing on protection against harassment, the press release said. Female senators took active part in debates, discussions and introduced some important legislation, it added.

“The Senate continues to revolutionize parliamentary procedures while relying on digital transformations and introducing new systems for tracking of bills, motions, and debates,” said the statement.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025