2 weeks Ago By Mubashir Hassan
LAHORE - The fourth day of the 24th session of the Punjab Assembly saw fiery debates and intense political exchanges, as issues ranging from PTI leaders’ arrests to protests by the healthcare workers dominated the Assembly floor. The session, which began after a delay of one hour and 42 minutes, opened with a discussion on the ongoing protest by the Grand Health Alliance. Government MPA Amjad Ali Javed urged the House to listen to the concerns of the alliance, which has been staging a sit-in outside the Assembly for ten days.
“The concerned minister should have come forward to explain the situation,” Javed said. PPP’s MPA Mumtaz Chang criticized police action against the protesting healthcare workers, particularly the dismantling of protest tents. “If women are sitting for their rights, let them be,” he stated.
In response, Punjab Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman assured the Assembly that the government was actively working on resolving the issue. “Committees at both the health department and provincial government levels are in place to address the Grand Health Alliance’s concerns,” he said. Our Jihad to uproot terrorism from country will continue: PM Also, the Opposition and Treasury locked horns over the arrest of PTI leaders near Adiala Jail a day earlier.
Opposition Leader Malik Ahmad Khan lashed out at the government terming the incident an absolute disgrace and a slap in the face of the judiciary. “Police threatened us with arrest, claiming they were following orders. We want to know whose orders were they obeying”.
He told the House that he, along with other leaders including Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul, Allama Nasir, and Hamid Raza, visited Adiala in accordance with jail rules, but were stopped two kilometers away and detained for two hours without warrants. Bhachar highlighted the ongoing mistreatment of the PTI founder and his family, stating that despite securing Form 47 mandates, they are being denied justice. He criticised law enforcement for following vague “orders” and demanded clarity on who issued the directive to detain them.
Immediately roll back canal project, Bilawal threats to quit coalition govt However, the opposition leader praised Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan for playing a historic democratic role and accused the government of targeting political opponents. Punjab Finance Minister Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman delivered a sharp rebuttal to the opposition leader’s criticism. He chose to highlight the hardships faced by the PML-N leaders during the PTI government’s tenure rather than directly addressing the concerns raised by the opposition leader.
He mentioned the alleged rigging in the 2018 elections, accusing PTI of stealing the mandate and using coercive tactics—like Jahangir Tareen’s plane—to force politicians into joining their party. His speech ended with a defiant tone: “We didn’t cry in jail. Now it’s your turn.
” The House also saw the presentation of two new bills: the Punjab Workers Welfare Fund (Amendment) Bill 2025 and the Companies Profits (Workers Participation) (Amendment) Bill 2025. Also, the Punjab Finance Minister formally initiated the post-budget debate as he presented a detailed overview of the provincial budget during his post-budget speech. CM Maryam launches assistive devices project for special persons Housing support was extended to over 16,000 families through the “Apni Chhat Apna Ghar” scheme with Rs 45 billion.
Sanitation efforts under the Suthra Punjab Program received Rs 21.93 billion. A Ramadan relief package provided Rs 10,000 each to 2.
6 million families, costing over Rs 31 billion. For business and youth, Rs 8 billion was issued in digital loans and Rs 5 billion under a small business scheme. Sixteen thousand e-bikes were distributed to students under a scheme costing Rs 1.
55 billion. As the agenda concluded, Samiullah Khan from the panel of chairpersons adjourned the session until Monday, April 21 at 2:00 PM. Tags: fiery clashes mark.
