LAHORE, Feb 24: The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday constituted a 12-member committee to review imposition of a toll by various district governments. The committee, headed by Minister for Law and Local Government Raja Basharat
, would meet on Thursday to discuss the various proposals and chalk out a plan to settle the issue.
Other members of the body are deputy opposition leader Rana Sanaullah Khan, Rana Aftab, Raja Riaz, Jehanzeb Imtiaz Gul, Dr Waseem Akhtar, Ehsanullah Waqas, Dr Asad Moazam, Nawaz Malik, Aleem Shah, Minister for Excise & Taxation Dr Shafiq and Minister for Communication & Works Chaudhry Zaheerudin.
Alleging large-scale corruption in the award of a toll contract in Faisalabad, Rana Sana urged the government to provide relief to people as several cases of altercation between the contractor and road-users were being reported daily.
He said he believed that the levy was illegal as the district government had not sought permission of the provincial authorities for the contract. Admitting claims of the opposition highlighted in an adjournment motion of Raja Riaz, the law minister, however, told the house that the Punjab government had been consulted before introduction of the toll.
He claimed that the levy had also been declared legal by the Faisalabad sessions court. Rana Sana termed minister's claim misleading, saying the sessions court had only vacated a stay order granted by a civil court against the tax.
Raja Basharat opposed immediate withdrawal of the toll, arguing that it would be against the spirit of devolution and would hurt independence of state departments. He said that recommendations to this effect should be made after a thorough study of the levy.
MMA's Ehsanullah Waqas said the road-user tax had also been imposed in Lahore but withdrawn when it was strongly resisted by the masses. Expressing fear that it might again be imposed by the district government, he warned that the step would evoke protests from people who were already facing financial hardships.
Members of the assembly from other districts said that a similar tax had been imposed in their districts by the respective district governments, and demanded its withdrawal.
