LAHORE: For the last three decades or so, there had been no legislation in Punjab pertaining to protection of minorities and members of Parliamentary Religious Harmony and Freedom Caucus (RFC) would raise the issue on the floor of the provincial legislature’s coming sessions.

“The RFC members will raise their concerns on the floor of the House to safeguard the rights of minorities by bringing a profound legislation in the light of Constitution of Pakistan,” MPA Mary Gill of the PML-N told newsmen after a meeting of caucus at a local hotel on Wednesday.

The caucus members would also raise the issues through parliamentary legislative agenda on the key areas where religious minorities had been facing discrimination.

It was the right time to put forward this legislative agenda which would be the breakthrough in the history of Punjab Assembly, said Ms Gill who was accompanied by MPA Shahzad Munshi.

To a question, she said the members would raise the demand through the Standing Committee on Minorities in Punjab to form the Minority Protection Policy, establishment of Provincial Punjab Minority Commission in the light of the Supreme Court verdict.

Amendments would also be suggested in the Pakistan Penal Code 1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898, the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ordinance 2008, and the Police Order 2002 besides aligning the Nadra Registration Act with the minority registrations to the extent of Punjab.

Published in Dawn, November 5th, 2015

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