PESHAWAR: Backing off from its announcement on the provincial assembly’s budget session for the third time in the current month, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Monday cancelled the sitting scheduled for today (Tuesday) without assigning any reason.

On Monday, the law department wrote to the provincial assembly’s secretary seeking withdrawal of its earlier letter regarding the convening of the assembly’s session.

The assembly later posted a notice on its website declaring that the order for the calling of the sitting on May 22 has been withdrawn.

The move has virtually ended the possibility of the PTI government holding the assembly’s last session and presenting budget for the next fiscal.

CM’s spokesman says sitting agenda incomplete, MPAs busy in constituencies

The chief minister’s spokesman and MPA, Shaukat Yousafzai, told Dawn that the house’s agenda was incomplete, while the lawmakers, too, were busy in their constituencies and therefore, the provincial assembly’s session won’t happen during the government’s remaining few days in office.

He also said the deputy speaker’s election and presentation of the next budget were unlikely to happen as the assembly was unlikely to meet in the remaining few days of the government.

On May 15, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly’s speaker has forwarded the schedule for the election of the provincial assembly deputy speaker and filling and withdrawal of nomination papers was scheduled for May 21 while election for the seat was likely to take place on May 22.

The deputy speaker’s seat has been lying vacant since Dr Mehr Taj Roghani quit it after election to the Senate on March 3.

During the current month, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government thrice issued notifications for calling assembly session for presenting budget; however, on all occasions these orders were withdrawn.

Earlier KP assembly budget session was scheduled for May3; however, it was withdrawn and another order for convening house’s session on May 14 was issued.

However, this order too was withdrawn on May 11 and a new notification to hold session on May 22 was issued, which too was withdrawn just a day before the start of the session on Monday.

The provincial assembly had issued the schedule of the 2018-19 budget’s session on May 3, saying the sitting will begin on May 14 and will end on May 28.

It had asked the lawmakers to submit their names with its secretary for participation in the budget debate.

Officials of the finance department also seemed to be skeptic about the provincial budget due to the government’s constant somersaults.

“We have sent a summary regarding budget presentation to the chief minister house and were still waiting for the response,” an official said.

He said the provincial government was not in a position to present administrative budget, which too required it to go through the legislature.

Another source quoted Chief Minister Pervez Khattak as saying that there were slim chances of the government going to assembly with budgetary proposals due to their thin majority.

Following the expulsion of 13 MPAs on the charge of selling vote in the recent Senate elections and issuance of show cause notices to six others, the PTI’s majority in the house has been weakened and its strength has come down to 43 from 63 in the house of 124.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2018