KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly on Friday approved the Sindh Consumers Protection Bill, 2014, empowering the government to establish consumer courts in every district and set up a consumer protection council.

The consumer courts shall have the same powers as are vested in civil courts under the code of civil procedure, 1908.

Under the law, if a manufacturer fails to perform or in any way infringes the liabilities under the law, he shall be punished with imprisonment of up to two years or with a fine that may extend Rs100,000 or with both in addition to damages or compensation.

Also read: Petition seeks establishment of consumer courts

The law also debars any person from advertising or promotion of services through lottery or attracting consumers for additional expenditure by way of reward or award in lieu thereof except for the charges for his original product.

Every manufacturer or trader, who sells any goods, shall issue to the purchaser a receipt showing, the date of sale, description of goods sold, the batch number of the product, the original printed retail price, date of manufacture and expiry, the quantity and price of the goods and the name and address of the seller, according to the bill.

The bill also envisages setting up of a consumers protection council which will have adequate representation of consumers, trade, service and industry.

Before the bill was moved by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Sikander Mandhro, chairman of the standing committee on law, parliamentary affairs and human rights Syed Sardar Ahmad of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement presented a report on two bills on the same subject (the government bill 13 of 2014 and the private bill 10 of 2013 moved by Sharmila Farooqi).

Earlier, The Sindh Board of Technical Education (Amendment) Bill # 1, 2015 was introduced, while consideration of The Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2015 was deferred to Monday on the motion of Dr Mandhro.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and PML-Functional lawmakers protested against the chair for not allowing them to raise some pressing issues and at one time rose from their seats but the chair ignored them and continued to take up business from the order of the day.

Getting the floor later, PML-N lawmaker Amir Haider Shah Shirazi from Thatta said development work had stopped due to ‘corrupt TMOs’ in Thatta. Also, he said, water supply had been suspended for the past 10 days to Dhabeji, the area of his constituency, due to disconnection of power supply. PML-N lawmaker Sorath Thebo said there was an acute drinking water problem in Dadu.

Other business taken up during the session included a privilege motion of Pakistan Peoples Party lawmaker Abdul Sattar Rajpar about Naushahro Feroze SDO. It was referred to the committee on rules of procedure and privileges. An adjournment motion of PML-F lawmaker Nusrat Sehar Abbasi regarding 300,000 wheat bags storage was ruled out of order.

In response to the call attention notice of MQM lawmaker Kamran Akhtar, local government minister Sharjeel Memon said KMC schools without boundary walls were operating in Korangi, Baldia, Malir, Keamari and some other areas but they had guards. The boundary walls would soon be built and the guards would be issued arms licences, he added.

He also mentioned about the action planned to check ghost KMC and KWSB employees from April 1 with distribution of salaries through the Sindh Bank.

Mr Memon said work on an underpass planned on Sharea Faisal would start within a week, while work on 26-km-long Jinnah Bridge to Quaidabad elevated expressway and Bus Rapid Transit project would also be launched soon.

The assembly also unanimously passed the resolution moved by PPP lawmaker Dr Sohrab Sarki for approaching the federal government for extension of Sui gas for Thul City that was approved by the Benazir Bhutto government in 1996.

Deputy Speaker Shehla Raza, who called the house in order at 10.30 am, called it a day at 1.20pm to meet again on Monday.

Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2015

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