Punjab Assembly approves Regularization of Services Bill

LAHORE: Punjab Assembly passed the Punjab Regularization of Services Bill 2018 here Friday.

The House passed the bill soon after its introduction by suspending the regular legislative procedure. Provincial Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan and four other members debated the bill.

Earlier, the second sitting of the 35th session of the current assembly was started two hour and 23 minutes behind its scheduled time with Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal in the chair. Only 20 MPAs were present at the outset of the sitting.

The House did not hold Question-Hour on the request of Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Public Engineering Sultan Haroon Bukhari.

Law Minister Punjab Rana Sanaullah Khan introduced the Explosive Substances (Punjab Amendment) Bill 2018; the Punjab Witness Protection Bill 2018; the Punjab Government Servants Housing Foundation (Amendment) Bill 2018; the Registration (Punjab Second Amendment) Bill 2018; the Punjab Fisheries (Amendment) Bill 2018; the Punjab Bonded Labour System (Abolition) (Amendment) Bill 2018 and the Punjab Agricultural Marketing Regulatory Authority Bill 2018.

The Chair referred these bills to the relevant committees with recommendation to present their reports on the bills within one month. He presented the Punjab Sound Systems (Regulation) (Amendment) Ordinance 2018 in the House which was also referred to the relevant committee.

The House deferred an adjournment motion of lawmaker Nabeela Hakim Ali due to delay in response from the government concerned. Opposition lawmakers staged a protest against hasty passage of the Punjab Regularization of Service Bill 2018.

On completion of day's agenda, the Speaker adjourned the House to meet again on Monday (April 30) at 2pm.