By BR News Desk

National Assembly (NA) Speaker Asad Qaiser has asked Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif to play role in legislation after building consensus on important reforms, Aaj News reported on Friday.

The NA speaker has written a letter to Shehbaz Sharif in which he stated that the opposition and the government will have to prioritise the national interests. He said both sides should step forward for building consensus on important reforms pertaining to the common interests.

In his letter, Qaiser urged the opposition leader to restart consultation on different bills including Election Amendment Bill 2021 by using the concerned forum of the committee on legislation.

He asked Shehbaz Sharif to play the role in building consensus on the bills and amendments. Qaiser added that different bills have sailed through the National Assembly but they failed to be passed by the Senate.

The NA speaker pointed out that the said bills will come into consideration in the joint session of the parliament.

He reminded that a committee had been constituted for achieving consensus on the bills and recommended amendments but the consultative process remained incomplete.

Adviser to Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan lamented the opposition’s non-cooperation over legislation.

Talking to the journalists in Islamabad on Thursday, Awan reiterated that i-voting aims to give voting rights to overseas Pakistanis and electoral reforms are meant for making the poll process transparent.

He said that the federal government has never rejected to hold consultations regarding the legislation. The government had also held consultations regarding the FATF, said Awan, adding that the concerned committee made contacts regarding the legislation.

He stated that the joint session of the parliament was postponed for a few days but not for years. The government is ready to build consensus, he added.

“We want legislation regarding the i-voting and electronic voting machines (EVMs) while the third law was about the international court’s decision related to Kulbhushan Jadhav.”

He said that the present government approved the bill of Hyderabad Technical Institute which was not approved by the Upper House. He added that the government is going to introduce the bill in the upcoming joint session.

Awan further detailed that the government is willing to bring a law for relaxing the internal loans besides finalising legislation regarding children of the female inmates, as well as the laws in the favour of women.

This article first appeared in Business Recorded on Nov12, 2021.