09 June 2004	Wednesday	20 Rabi-us-Saani 1425

LAHORE, June 8: The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday took up three bills one of which was referred to a standing committee and the other two were kept pending for evolving a consensus.

A bill for the change of name of University of Arid Agriculture, Rawalpindi, to Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University was moved by Tanveer Ashraf Kaira. Agriculture minister Arshad Khan Lodhi said the ministry had no objection to this, but the university syndicate had raised certain objections.

Left with three options, the speaker decided to refer the bill to the standing committee on agriculture and asked it to submit report in a month. The house also took up The Torture Compensation Bill, which demanded of the police to pay compensation to people they tortured during investigation.

The mover, Raja Shafqat Khan Abbasi, insisted that it was time to put further restrictions on the police against torture. The parliamentary law secretary agreed to the spirit of the bill, but opposed it on the grounds that it would overlap with an existing law. There was a need to re-write it so that it did not clash with the Police Act, CrPC and the constitution, he added.

"Most of the clauses already exist and the bill, passed as such, will add to confusion. But there is certainly a need for such a bill and the government is ready to sit with opposition and finalize modalities of such a legislation," he said.

Both the sides agreed to keep the bill pending for evolving a consensus. The Punjab Office of the Ombudsman bill was also kept pending until both sides agreed to make amendments to it. It is pertinent to mention that the Punjab Assembly had also passed a bill on Monday, which aimed at stopping child begging and ensure rehabilitation of children.