12 May 2004	Wednesday	21 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425

ISLAMABAD, May 11: A number of resolutions pertaining to civil-military relationship, transparency in the government and human rights were rejected in the Senate chairman's chamber over the past year after being declared inadmissible under the rules.

The opposition's bid to highlight the issues in the house through bills, questions, motions and resolutions was thwarted in the name of secrecy and being of sensitive nature, sources said.

Rule 121(4)(f) of the Rules of Business and Conduct of Business in the Senate 1988 authorize the chairman to kill a resolution in the chamber if in his opinion it is of secret or sensitive nature.

Opposition leaders said there were no guidelines about determining that a matter was of sensitive nature and its discussion could endanger national security. There was no mechanism for protesting against the rejection in the chamber of a question or resolution, they said.

People's Party Parliamentarians Senator Farhatullah Babar was informed that his resolutions and motions had been disallowed under rules 119 and 121 (4)(b). The PPP has written to the Commonwealth and voiced concern over parliament being made an irrelevant forum by the military rulers.

It alleged that questions of national importance were being declared inadmissible and ruled out of discussion in parliament. The sources said a PPP resolution calling for the setting up of a parliamentary committee to investigate the Kargil incident was killed in the chamber by the chairman.

The mover was informed through a letter that the matter was of a "secret and sensitive nature" and therefore could not be discussed in the house. The PPP also asked a question whether any inquiry had been held into the Kargil war and if so whether its findings would be placed before the house.

The question was disallowed on the grounds that it involved a "sensitive and secret" matter. Another resolution rejected in the chamber on the same grounds urged the government to enact legislation to regulate the functioning of intelligence agencies, particularly the Inter-Services Intelligence, with respect to raids, detention and arrest of suspects.

A question about laws governing the intelligence agencies was turned down in the chamber. Senator Babar said: "How could the so-called lawmakers make laws when they were denied such simple information as whether a law on a particular subject existed."

A resolution calling for the appointment of a self-regulating bipartisan parliamentary inquiry commission to examine allegations of nuclear proliferation and review the functioning of the National Command and Control Authority was disallowed in the chamber.

A resolution praising the courage of the police constable in Lahore who had stopped a car with tinted glasses belonging to a senior military officer was declared inadmissible for being "trivial and of no general interest and importance."

A resolution calling for withdrawal of the exemption granted to serving defence personnel from payment tax at toll plazas was declared inadmissible without assigning any reason or quoting a rule.